Teardrops On My Guitar
by xStart.a.RIOTx
Summary: Misty's coming to visit to spend some time with Ash, Brock, and Dawn. To Dawn, it seems like Ash is in love with Misty, and that she has no chance with him. But Gary and Brock see this, and remind her that things aren't always what they seem to be.
1. Arrival

Disclaimers: I don't own the song "Teardrops On My Guitar". Taylor Swift does.  
And I don't own Pokemon (though I sure wish I did…)

**Ash: Uh…why do you want to own us?**

**Me: *slaps him hard* That's none of your business!**

**Ash: OW! That hurt!**

**Me: *laughs* Good! It was supposed to hurt.**

**Ash: *frowns and crosses his arms* you're mean…**

**Dawn: Just start the story already!**

**Me: *still laughing at Ash* okay, fine!**

**

* * *

**

Dawn sighed, and looked out to the rising sun as she sat down in the grass near the tents they had set up in the forest. Brock was cooking breakfast, and Ash was still fast asleep in his tent.

The three of them were headed for the nearest city, where they would meet up with Brock and Ash's old friend, Misty Waterflower. The redhead was coming to visit them, just to spend some time with her two old friends again…and also to meet Dawn, but mostly to see Ash and Brock again.

In fact, it was all Ash could ever talk about for the past days. It was _Misty this_, _Misty_ _that_…he would even talk about the adventures he and Brock had had with her.

And Dawn couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy.

Yes, it was true. Dawn began to develop strong feelings for the raven-haired boy months ago, and now she knew that she truly was in love with the Pokemon trainer. She would stare at him without even thinking. She loved talking to him. He was always on her mind. She couldn't help but smile if he just called out her name. And she loved how he was oh so daring and brave, and kind and caring…and he loves Pokemon so much.

She sighed dreamily as she continued to think about Ash.

He was just so…amazing. And he even looked amazing, too. She had never met anyone as unique and wonderful as him.

But she knew that he didn't love her. It was clear to her that he had feelings for the fellow redhead that was visiting them today. Dawn knew that Ash and Misty had known each other longer and been through so much (despite the fact that Ash rambled about events he, Brock, and Misty had done in the past).

Dawn sighed. _'He'll never see me more than a close friend,'_ she thought to herself, resting her chin on her hands. _'He just sees me as a friend. I'm just a friend…'_

"Dawn," a voice breathed out.

Dawn jolted up and turned her head only to see Ash taking a seat beside her. His red cap wasn't on his head, so his messy shaggy ebony hair was exposed.

"Oh, hi Ash…" Dawn replied, her dreary mood hinted in her voice.

Ash looked at the blue-haired co-ordinator, worry in his brown eyes. "What's wrong?" he asked her.

Dawn looked at him and faked a smile (well, it was more of a _weak_ smile). "Nothing's wrong!" she protested. "No need to worry!"

_Drew looks at me_

_I fake a smile so he won't see_

_That I want and I'm needin'_

_Everything that we should be_

Ash wasn't convinced by her act, and continued to frown. "That's when I worry the most…come on Dawn, I know something's wrong," Ash told her. "You're my best friend, I know you better than anyone, tell me what's wrong."

Before Dawn could say something, Brock called out, "Hey you two! Breakfast is ready! We should start eating. Misty's probably waiting for us!"

Ash grinned at the mention of _food_. "Alright, we're coming!" he yelled back, and raced over to the picnic table where Brock was setting up breakfast.

Dawn couldn't help but laugh at the raven-haired boy's usual reaction to the mention of food. "Ash Ketchum, don't eat all the food! Save some for me!" she called out and walked to the picnic table where the two boys had started eating already.

The blue-haired co-ordinator took a seat beside Ash and grabbed a plate and put two pancakes on it, and then started to dig in.

"Misty called," Brock announced after he gulped down some orange juice.

"Really?" Ash replied eagerly. "What'd she say?"

Brock smiled at the trainer's excited attitude towards the subject of Misty. He's always suspected that Ash did have some feelings for that girl. "She said that she'll arrive at Sunyshore City in about an hour," he told him.

Why had they chosen to meet her at Sunyshore City? Well, they all knew Misty's love for the ocean, beaches, and water pokemon and Sunyshore City had all of those things in it. Plus, it was one of the nearest cities from where they were.

"Cool! I can't wait to see her," Ash beamed. "Man, I haven't seen her for a long time. I wonder how her pokemon are, and I wonder what she's been up to lately…"

Dawn looked down at her food, becoming a little depressed again.

It's not that she hated Misty…in fact, she was really excited to meet her. She sounded like an amazing, friendly girl. It's just that Ash talked about her so much, and she felt like that was all he could ever talk about now. And she couldn't talk about anything that compared to what Ash said…she didn't have anything as exciting as the stories Ash would tell.

'_I know it's natural to be excited to see a friend again…' _the blue-haired girl thought to herself, _'But his eagerness isn't just natural, I can tell. He's really missed her…he must love her so much.'_

_I'll bet she's beautiful_

_That girl he talks about_

_And she's got everything _

_That I have to live without_

"Dawn," Brock called out to her.

Dawn lifted her head up to see that Brock and even Ash were already finished with their breakfast. She looked down at her own and saw that she only drank a third of her milk and she merely touched her pancakes. "Yes?" she replied.

"Are you done with your breakfast? Or do you want to finish it while Ash and I clean up and pack?" the older brown-haired boy offered.

Dawn flashed a smile. "No, I'm finished! I'll help you guys clean up!" she replied cheerfully.

And so, the three started to clean up their meal and the picnic table (Pikachu, Piplup, Pachurisu, Buizel, and Sudowoodo helped too). Then, they packed up their belongings and took down the tents. As they did, the Pokemon rested and started playing with each other and Ash, Brock, and Dawn started talking about the following activities that they were planning to do in Sunyshore City with Misty.

Then they started heading to the City, where Misty would probably be waiting.

"Remember how you two used to argue a lot?" Brock reminded Ash while grinning.

The raven haired boy laughed. "Yeah, I remember…we used to argue over the silliest things," he reminisced. "We even argued even though it was pointless to!"

Then, Dawn giggled. "That reminds me of how you and I argued when we started travelling with each other, Ash," she added. "We argued almost everyday!"

_Drew talks to me_

_I laugh 'cause it's just so funny_

_I can't even see_

_Anyone when he's with me_

Ash grinned. "Oh yeah, I remember!" he replied. "We used to argue about gym battles and contests so much…how stupid were we? And remember the time you accidently threw the pokeball at me instead of Buneary?"

Dawn laughed, delighted that she could finally talk about something so funny and interesting to Ash. "Yeah, I remember that…"

_Flashback- Three Years Ago_

_A thirteen year old Dawn was getting ready to catch a Buneary and a fourteen year old Ash was supervising her. A sixteen year old Brock was watching the two of them along with Pikachu._

"_Here we go!" Dawn cheered as she was readying to throw the pokeball at the Buneary to catch it._

_Ash widened his eyes. "Hold on!" he yelled at her. "You gotta make your pokeball bigger first!"_

_Dawn looked at her pokeball and then began to panic, almost dropping the pokeball. She finally made it bigger. "I'm ready now!" she proudly said._

_Then she grinned and threw the pokeball. "Let's go pokeball!" she cheered, but then the red and white ball slipped from her hands and hit Ash on the face instead._

_Dawn gasped as it slipped from her hands. And Ash fell over, with the pokeball rolled over to the side. Brock looked at the two, amused but worried and disappointed at the same time._

_Dawn looked at Ash. "Oops! Sorry!" she apologized._

_Ash got up and glared at the blue-haired girl. "Watch where you throw that thing!" he angrily shouted at her._

_This made Dawn angry, and she glared back at him, putting her hands on her hips. "It was an accident!" she yelled back. "If you hadn't been yelling at me, my hand wouldn't have slipped!"_

"_You weren't doin' it right!" he told her._

_Brock, Pikachu, and Piplup just watched helplessly as the two continued to bicker and argue._

"_Look, don't you get nasty with me!" she warned Ash._

"_Just get it together and I won't have to," Ash told her._

_Piplup looked at the two arguing, and then looked at the Buneary Dawn was trying to catch. It had run away! "Piplup! Piplup! Piplup!" the blue pokemon yelled, showing the two that the Buneary had run away._

_Ash and Dawn stopped arguing and saw the Buneary run away, too. "No! Buneary!" they both yelled in unison._

_Dawn angrily glared at Ash. "Well, I hope you're happy now!"_

_Ash glared back. "Don't look at me!"_

"_Why not? It's your fault!"_

"_You're yappin' scared Buneary away you know!"_

_Brock looked at the two helplessly. "This is going to be a long day…" Brock muttered to himself._

_End of Flashback…_

"Haha, we were so stupid and dumb to argue like that," Dawn said.

Ash nodded, smiling. "Yeah, but now we're different and we understand each other…'cause we're really close friends now," he agreed.

Dawn laughed nervously at the mention of them being _close friends_. "Yeah, we're best friends now…" she muttered to herself. And she knew it would just be that way, they would never be more than friends.

* * *

"Do you see Misty?" Ash asked Dawn and Brock.

They were at the dock in Sunyshore City. The sun was shining high in the sky, it was noon. The ferry had arrived and tons of people were piling out of it…maybe because it was summer and they were excited to head off to the beaches, swimming pools, and summer resorts to cool off. Ash, Brock, and Dawn were looking around for Misty, even their Pokemon were helping!

Dawn laughed. "For the millionth time, no!" she told Ash.

Then she muttered to Brock, "He must be really excited to finally see her."

Brock nodded and grinned. "Yeah, back then he had a small crush on her when we were traveling with her…I don't know if he still does, but it's possible he might."

Dawn's smile immediately wiped off her face. _'So he did have a crush on her…he probably still does…'_ she thought to herself. Brock noticed the blue-haired girl's disappointment and was about to ask her something, until Pikachu started yelling.

"Pika, Pikachu!" the yellow mouse pokemon yelped, catching Ash, Dawn, and Brock's attention.

"What is it Pikachu?" Ash asked him.

Pikachu pointed straight ahead of them. They all looked and saw a redhead with a ponytail and she was about seventeen years old. She was wearing a sleeveless yellow vest with blue buttons, a red tank top, yellow shorts, and dark orange sneakers…and she looked somewhat beautiful.

It was Misty!

"Misty!" Ash and Brock shouted in unison.

The redhead saw the three and ran up to them grinning and dragging her luggage along. "Ash, Brock!" she happily yelled.

She ran up to Ash and hugged him. Ash was caught off guard and blushed a little, and then he hugged her back. Dawn felt a pang of jealousy and sadness and looked down to the ground, and Brock noticed this too.

'_I wonder…is she…?' _Brock thought as he looked at Dawn.

"Hey Misty, I missed you," Ash told her.

Misty blushed and smiled. "I missed you, too," she replied and then bent down to Pikachu and rubbed its head. "And I missed you too, Pikachu!"

Pikachu grinned and cheered, "Pika pika!" which probably meant "I missed you too!"

Then Misty headed to Brock and hugged him. "I missed you too, Brock," she told him, though their hug was way shorter than the hug she gave Ash.

Then she walked over to the blue-haired co-ordinator. "Hey, you must be Dawn!" Misty greeted, holding her hand out to Dawn. "Ash, Brock, and May have told me so much about you. I hear you're a great Pokemon co-ordinator!"

Dawn smiled a sweet smile back, and took Misty's hand and shook it. "Oh thanks! And you must be Misty!" she replied cheerfully. "Ash and Brock say that you're an awesome water Pokemon trainer!"

"Looks like Dawn and Misty are getting along just fine," Brock told Ash as the two girls continued to small talk with each other.

Ash grinned and nodded. "Yeah," he beamed, "Just like when May came for the Wallace Cup."

Misty petted Dawn's Piplup. "Oh, I love your Piplup!" she squealed. "It's a really cute water pokemon!"

Dawn laughed. "Thanks! And it's a really strong one, too!"

"Piplup! Piplup!" the penguin pokemon chimed in.

Misty smiled at the pokemon, and then turned back to Ash and Brock. "Oh, and you won't believe who I ran into on the ferry," Misty told them, rolling her eyes.

Right on cue, a voice called out, "Hey Ashy Boy! Long time no see!"

They all turned their heads, only to see…

"GARY?" Ash, Dawn, and Brock yelled in unison.

Gary smirked and walked over to the group. "Yep, that's right Ashy Boy!" Gary said. "Hi Brock, Misty, Dawn."

"You've met Gary before?" Misty whispered to Dawn, surprised.

Dawn nodded in reply. "Yeah, once," she replied. "He came and helped Ash and his Gliscor."

"Gary, what are you doing here?" Ash asked the auburn haired boy.

"Well, I decided to take a little break and hang out in one of the summer resorts here," Gary explained. "Who'd thought I'd run into you guys again?"

"Well, which summer resort are you staying in?" Misty asked him.

"The Sunyshore Beach Resort."

Dawn grinned. "That's the same exact one we're staying in!" she exclaimed.

Ash groaned. "Oh no…"

"Come on guys, we need to get our reservations before the Check-In Desk closes!" Brock reminded them.

Dawn looked at her poketch to check the time, and her eyes widened. "And the Check-In Desk closes in thirty minutes!"

They all gasped, grabbed their bags and started to run to the Sunyshore Beach Resort as fast as they could, fearing that they'd lose their reservations if they didn't make it to the Check-In Desk on time.

* * *

**Me: Well, that's it! I hope it was good enough. :]**

**Gary: From what I read, I thought it was really horrible.**

**Me: *whacks him on the head***

**Gary: OW!**

**Ash: HAHA! Do that again!**

**Me: *grins evilly and whacks Gary so many times***

**Gary: OW! OW! OW! I feel so abused…**

**Dawn: Why am I so sad and weepy in this chapter?**

**Brock: 'Cause the author gets to make you do whatever she wants and...'cause you love Ash!**

**Gary: *sarcastically* Wow, you're so smart.**

***Ash and Dawn both blush***

**Misty: Umm….bye people?**

**Me: Yeah, what she said! Bye! ;)**


	2. Surprises

Disclaimer: I don't own the song. And, I do not own Pokemon (…and I still wish I did)

**Ash: Why can't you just tell me why you wanna own us?**

**Misty: *slaps her forehead* here we go again…**

**Dawn: *whacks Ash's head* Just shut up and let her start the story.**

**Ash: OW! Dawn…I thought you loved me.**

**Dawn: *rolls her eyes and ignores him***

**Me: Haha, thank you Dawn. Now on with the story!**

**

* * *

**

"Doesn't it look pretty, Piplup?" Dawn exclaimed, referring to the sight of the beach in front of her.

Piplup nodded to the blue-haired co-ordinator. "Piplup! Piplup!"

Dawn, Ash, Misty, and Brock had found their villa and unpacked. They all had their own rooms and bathrooms, and the rooms felt like regular bedrooms. They even had their own living room with a couch, TV, etc., a dining room with a set up dining table, and a kitchen full of many useful supplies for cooking. And best of all, their patio was right in front of the beach, so they could just walk out from their patio to go to the beach if they wanted to…and the Sunyshore Beach Resort's clubhouse was also in a walking distance from their patio.

And ironically, Gary's villa was next door to theirs. Dawn laughed at that thought: she knew Ash was so annoyed by that thought.

Dawn and Piplup were sitting on a bench swing a few feet away from the patio, her feet brushing against the soft grainy white sand every time she lightly swung the chair. She was admiring the salty sea scent of the beach, the roaring of the glistening green waves, and the light breeze. And she was also watching Ash play with his Pokemon near the beach.

She sighed, and then an idea hit her.

"Hey Piplup, do you want to play on the beach with Pachurisu, Buneary, Ambipom, and Ash's Pokemon?" she asked the penguin pokemon excitedly.

Piplup smiled delightfully. "Piplup! Piplup!" Piplup agreed.

Dawn smiled at the Pokémon's enthusiasm. "Alright, just let me get changed first," she told Piplup.

They went inside the villa and into Dawn's room. Dawn quickly changed into a dark blue one piece swimsuit and slid on some short white surf shorts. She left her hair down, and then she threw her pokeballs in the air, letting Buneary, Pachurisu, and Ambipom out.

"Hey guys! Piplup and I wanna know if you guys wanna go to the beach and play! Do you?" she asked them.

The Pokemon cheered and that made Dawn smile. Dawn grabbed a few towels, and then she and her Pokemon ran out to the patio (she took out Mamoswine from its pokeball in the patio), and ran over to the beach where Ash was with his Pokemon. Dawn saw that he was in the sand, making a sand castle with Pikachu, Staraptor, Grotle, Monferno, Buizel, and Gliscor. She blushed when she realized that he was just wearing black surf shorts, with his bare chest revealing.

"Hey Ash!" she called out to him as she and Piplup, Pachurisu, Ambipom, Buneary, and Mamoswine finally got to Ash and his Pokemon.

Ash looked up and grinned, and also a slight blush came up his face (from seeing his best friend in a swimsuit). "Hi Dawn! Do your Pokemon wanna play with us?"

Dawn smiled and nodded. "Yeah! That's why we came here," she told him.

Ash grinned even more and then turned to his Pokemon. "Hey guys, can Dawn's pokemon help with the sandcastle too?" he asked them. They all cheered in response, so Dawn's pokemon went over to the sandcastle to help Ash and his pokemon.

Dawn put her towels down and sat near the tide, watching the Pokemon build a four foot tall sandcastle. She was too busy watching the Pokemon that she didn't even notice Ash had left the sandcastle, sneaking up behind her.

Suddenly, Dawn felt a bunch of cool water being splashed on her back. "AAH!" she screamed, not prepared to get hit. She turned her head only to see Ash in the water, laughing his head off.

Dawn grinned. "Oh…this means war, Ash!" she yelled at him as she ran into the water next to him. She splashed a great amount of water on him, and he started spitting and sputtering water out of his mouth. This time, Dawn started to laugh.

"Hey, it's not that funny!" Ash told her, referring to the saltwater going into his mouth, which tasted really bad.

Dawn laughed and shook her head. "Oh yes it is!"

Ash shook his head, grinning. "Not if you have saltwater going into your mouth!"

Then, they both started laughing, and started to splash each other with water again.

A few minutes later, strong waves started forming in the water, and it ran over both of them. They both screamed and yelped in surprise.

Once they popped their heads out of the water, Dawn looked at Ash. "Okay, you're right…it really isn't that funny if you have saltwater going into your mouth."

Ash nodded. "Come on, let's go back to the shallow end," he told her and grabbed her hand as they ran out of the deep end as fast as they could.

When they were almost at the shallow end, a wave pushed Dawn over on to Ash, and they both landed on the ground of the shallow end…Dawn on top of Ash, both of them were face to face.

Once they realized what position they were in, both of them blushed. "I'm so sorry! I shouldn't be so clumsy…" Dawn apologized (still blushing) as she got off of Ash and sat next to him, the tide brushing against their bodies.

Ash gave her a weak smile. "It wasn't your fault, the wave pushed you," he told her.

They stayed silent for awhile, looking out to the glistening green sea and the afternoon sun shining in the sky. And both of them felt a little strange: Dawn felt strange because she felt like she was trying to get in between Ash and Misty and she didn't want to do that, and Ash felt strange because he knew he had a crush on Misty, but now he wasn't entirely sure…

"Ash?" Dawn breathed out.

The raven-haired boy turned his head to look at the girl beside him. "Yes?"

Dawn kept a straight face and managed to put a small, curious smile. "Do you like…Misty?"

'_If he says yes…don't cry, you should be happy for him…you don't want to ruin your friendship with him,' _the blue-haired girl repeatedly thought to herself. _'Don't cry, don't cry…'_

Ash's eyes widened. "Uh…w-what makes you think that?" he stuttered.

Dawn smiled a weak smile. "It's a little obvious. I can see the way you look at her. And you've been talking about her a lot lately…and whenever you talk about her, you get this _dreamy _look in your eyes…and you look at her like she's the most beautiful thing in the world."

Ash looked down to the ground, embarrassed that his feelings for the redhead could be seen…but at the same time, he could sense a little disappointment in her voice. _'Why is she disappointed?' _he thought to himself, too thick to realize that Dawn was disappointed because she had feelings for him.

"So do you like her?" Dawn asked the boy once again.

Ash nodded. "Yeah…I guess," he replied.

"Why?"

"Well, it's just that we've been through so much together. And even though we argue a lot…I still like her. She's really caring, smart, and she's a great water Pokemon trainer…and she is kind of pretty…" he told her.

"Hmm…" Dawn tried to smile, but she couldn't. If he liked her, she should be okay with it. He was her best friend. She couldn't bear to lose him.

…But why was it so hard to be happy for him?

_He says he's so in love_

_He's finally got it right_

_I wonder if he knows_

_He's all I think about at night_

"Well…do _you_ like anyone?" Ash asked her.

Dawn's eyes widened in surprise, not expecting Ash to ask her that. "Well…" she trailed off, unsure if she should tell Ash or not.

Ash grinned. "Come on, Dawn…I told you who I like! You have to tell me now!"

Dawn sighed. "Well…I do like someone…"

"Who? Do I know him?"

Dawn nodded. "Yeah…you've known him for a long time."

'_Because you __**are**__ him!' _she mentally shouted to him, knowing he couldn't hear.

"Oh…" Ash couldn't help but feel a bit overprotective over Dawn. Why did he feel that way? He really didn't know why.

Another silence came between them, the tide still brushing against their skin.

A few minutes later, Ash stood up, still soaked. "Come on, we better go back inside…the sun's already setting. Brock and Misty are probably waiting for us with our dinner," Ash told Dawn while helping her up, suddenly becoming hungry at the mention of food.

Dawn nodded and grabbed the towels she brought and gave one to Ash so they could dry off. Both of them walked back to their villa, along with their Pokemon following behind, satisfied with the play date they had at the beach that day.

* * *

"Where were you guys?" Misty asked Ash and Dawn as they ate their dinner.

Misty, Ash, Dawn, and Brock were in the patio of their villa, eating dinner Brock had made on a circular table. Dawn and Ash both washed up and took a shower once they returned to the villa, and also cleaned up their Pokemon. Misty and Brock had invited Gary to come eat with them, and Gary accepted the offer…so he was also eating dinner on the table with them.

"Oh, we were at the beach with our Pokemon…just playing around and building sandcastles," Ash replied casually, too entranced by the food he was eating.

"Oh," Misty breathed out, feeling jealous.

Then she remembered something that she wanted to tell them.

"Guess what!" Misty told the rest of them.

"What?" Brock, Gary, Dawn, and Ash all asked in unison.

"Well, I was walking around the summer resort and I found out that there's going to be a dance at the clubhouse at the clubhouse over there!" Misty exclaimed, pointing to the clubhouse near their patios and the beach. "And it doesn't cost you anything if you're staying in a villa this week!"

Dawn smiled, she loved parties or any occasion that allowed her to dress herself up. "Awesome! When is it?" she asked eagerly.

Misty grinned. "In two days!" she told her. "So, who wants to go?"

"I'll go!" Dawn cheered.

Gary shrugged. "Well, when there's a dance, there's usually cute girls…I suppose I'll go," he said.

Hearts started forming in Brock's eyes. "Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny might be there!" he thought out loud. "So I'll come!"

Misty smiled a sweet smile at Dawn, Gary, and Brock. Then, she turned to Ash.

"What about you, Ash? Do you want to come?" she asked him in a somewhat pleading and flirty tone.

Ash was uncertain at first, but then he smiled and gave in to Misty's begging expression. "Sure! I'm up for it!"

Misty smiled, she was glad her friends agreed to come

…but then she remembered a tiny detail she forgot to mention.

"Oh, I almost forgot to tell you guys…" she started, "You're supposed to have a date for the dance…"

"WHAT?" Ash, Dawn, Gary, and Brock all screamed in surprise.

Misty sighed, and gave a weak smile. "Are you guys still up for it?" she asked. "I mean…you don't have to if you don't want to…"

Seeing how disappointed she became, Ash put his hand on her shoulder, and Misty blushed when he did. "Of course we're up for it," he reassured her. "We just…have to get dates in two days…right guys?"

Brock and Gary agreed, but Dawn wasn't sure she'd be able to go. She knew Ash and Misty would end up going together, and she didn't know if she could bear seeing them together. Dawn knew she would probably be _dateless_. She frowned, still thinking if she should go or not.

"What about you, Dawn?" Ash asked her.

Dawn looked down, still uncertain. "Well…I don't know," she replied.

"Please?" Ash pleaded, doing 'puppy dog eyes'.

Dawn sighed. She could never resist Ash whenever he used the puppy dog eyes and the begging tone. "Okay, fine," she replied with a weak smile. "I'll go."

They all cheered, glad that their friend would come and continued to finish their dinner and talk about how excited they were for the dance.

* * *

It was midnight, the silver moon shun in the night sky.

Ash and Misty were asleep, and who knew what Gary was doing in his villa. Brock was washing the dishes and cleaning up the dishes.

Where was Dawn?

She was back on the bench swing near the patio, deep in thought and her sapphire blue eyes were full of worry. Dawn didn't know whether or not she should go to the dance. She knew she should go, so Misty and Ash wouldn't be disappointed. But she knew she wouldn't be able to get a date by the time of the dance. And she really knew that she wasn't going to go with Ash.

The blue-haired girl sighed. "Maybe I shouldn't go to the dance…" she breathed out.

"Why not?" a familiar voice asked her.

Dawn's eyes widened. She turned her head and saw an auburn haired boy come and sit next to her on the bench swing. "Gary!" she yelped. "What are you doing here?"

He shrugged, putting his hands behind his head, resting his head casually and looking up at the sky. "I saw you outside, wondering why you were out here so late."

"Oh." Dawn blushed by the fact that the boy beside her somewhat cared for her.

Gary smirked, seeing her blush. "So, why don't you want to go to the dance?" he asked her once again.

Dawn sighed hesitantly. "It's not that I don't want to go to the dance…it's because of someone in particular…"

"It's because of Ash, isn't it?" another voice butted in.

Gary and Dawn turned their heads and saw Brock standing beside the bench swing, looking at his blue haired friend with worry.

Dawn became speechless. _'Where did he get that from? How did he know?' _she thought to herself.

The auburn haired boy smirked. "It's because of_ Ashy boy_?" he exclaimed in surprise.

Dawn timidly looked down to the ground. "Yes, it's because of Ash, I know he'll probably ask out Misty, not me…and I don't know if I can bear watching them together," she admitted.

Gary grinned and put his hand on her shoulder. "Wow Dawn…you've got it _bad_," he told her.

Dawn nodded in agreement. "And I know he'll never like me more than a best friend."

Brock shook his head, putting his hand on Dawn's shoulder. "That's not true," he told her. "He may have a crush on Misty, but she might end up not being _the one _for him."

Gary smiled, putting his hand on Dawn's other shoulder. "That's right," he agreed. "Ashy Boy likes you…he just doesn't see it yet."

Dawn sighed, looking up to the twinkling white stars on the night sky. "I hope you're right."

_He's the reason for the teardrops on my guitar_

_The only thing that keeps me wishing on a wishing star_

_He's the song in the car I keep singing_

_Don't know why I do_

_

* * *

_

**Me: Well, that's it! I still think it's sort of crappy...but it's up to you to decide that!**

**Dawn: Please review!**

**Ash: And review on how awesome I looked at the beach!**

**Gary: Oh! Review on how good I looked too!**

**Misty and Dawn: *slaps both of them on the head***

**Me: Aw…I didn't get to whack them.**

**Brock: Aw…me too.**


	3. Caught and Revealed

Disclaimer: I don't own the song. And, I do not own Pokemon (…though I really want to)

**Ash: Could you please tell me why you wanna own us?**

**Me: Nope! *whacks him on the head***

**Ash: OW! Why do you always hit me?**

**Me: *laughs* 'Cause it's funny!**

**Ash: Why don't you ever hit Gary?**

**Me: Oh, thanks for reminding me! *whacks Ash and a clueless Gary on the heads***

**

* * *

**

"_Well…do you like anyone?" Ash asked her, hoping that she didn't like anyone. He didn't know why he didn't want Dawn to like anyone, maybe because he felt so protective over her…or because of another reason…_

_Dawn's eyes widened. "Well…" she trailed off._

_Ash grinned. "Come on, Dawn…I told you who I like! You have to tell me now!" _

_The blue-haired girl sighed. "Well…I do like someone…"_

'_So she does like someone, aw man…' Ash thought, disappointed. 'But I'm __**not **__jealous…am I? Of course I'm not! I like Misty…or do I?_

_Again, Ash managed to hide his extreme disappointment. "Who? Do I know him?"_

_Dawn nodded. "Yeah…you've known him for a long time."_

"_Oh…"_

Ash sighed, the things that happened yesterday between him and Dawn kept running through his head…_especially _the part when they admitted who they liked. He was sitting at the table in the patio, resting his arms on the smooth glass.

And Ash couldn't help but wonder…who Dawn liked. She said that Ash knew him…and she also said that Ash has known this guy for a long time.

Why did he feel this way? Why did he feel the urge to find out the mystery man his best friend liked? Maybe it was jealousy…maybe it was just him being overprotective…but whatever it was, Ash ignored it.

Did she like…_Brock? _Ash sickened at the thought. _'No way she likes Brock!' _Ash thought to himself. _'Brock's like an older brother to her…and to __**me**__!' _Ash shook his head, and knew that there was no possibility of Dawn liking Brock…that would be disturbing if she did. And of course Brock wouldn't like Dawn that way either, he only liked older women (like Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny) and he only saw Dawn as a little sister.

The raven haired boy started to think of other guys he'd known for a long time that Dawn also knew. _'Did she like Drew?' _he wondered.

What would Dawn see in that arrogant, cocky green-haired boy? Sure, he was good-looking and he could show his nice side if he wanted to…_but still!_

But then he realized that Dawn already knew that Drew and May were an _item_…and still are. And Dawn only admired his contest skills, not so much of his personality. _Only May can see the good things in that boy_, he had recalled Dawn telling him, Ash laughed at that thought.

'_How about Paul…did she like Paul?' _he asked himself. He thought about it for a minute…no, she couldn't like Paul. He acted like a jerk around her and always put her down, and Ash knew that she disliked that purple haired jerk almost as much as he did.

'_If she didn't like Brock, Drew, or Paul…then that means…' _Ash thought, putting everything in place…like putting a puzzle together.

Once Ash realized the result, he freaked out. "SHE LIKES GARY?" he screamed in horror. No, she couldn't like him…she couldn't. But when he put everything together, it came down to _him_…the guy who was always one step ahead of him. No wonder she liked him, he was perfect for her. Wait, why was he feeling this way? Was he _jealous_?

Ash frowned. _'No, I AM NOT JEALOUS!' _Ash denied. _'I like Misty, and that's that! I couldn't like Dawn! It'll ruin our friendship! She likes Gary, not me…Wait, so I do like her? I like Dawn __**and **__Misty? Or I just like Misty?' _Ash shook his head, confused at his feelings. Maybe he was jealous…maybe he did like her, maybe he just didn't realize it yet.

"Ashy Boy!"

Speak of the Devil.

Ash turned his head to see the older auburn boy walking out from Ash, Dawn, Brock, and Misty's villa, taking a seat across from Ash. "What?"

"I heard you scream my name," Gary told him.

Ash blushed. "Well…I _sort of _did," he explained. "It was sort of like an angry outburst…something like that."

Gary raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms. "Really?" he sarcastically said. "What were you doing out here?"

Ash sighed and decided to come out clean with Gary, there really wasn't any other choice. "I was thinking about something that happened yesterday," he replied.

"And?"

"Dawn and I were talking about who we liked yesterday…and I was thinking about that before you came in here," Ash told him.

Gary started to grin, and started to become more attentive. "Oh really? What did you guys talk about?"

Ash looked down to the ground nervously. "Well, she asked me if I liked Misty…and I said yes. And then I asked her if she liked anyone and she said that she did like someone. I asked her who it was and if I knew that guy…and she told me that I do know that guy, and that I've known him for a real long time…and I can't help but wonder who she likes. And I think she likes…_you._" Ash stuck his tongue out in disgust after he said the last statement.

Gary smirked and chuckled. He knew that Dawn liked Ash and only Ash…_'But Ashy Boy thinks she likes me!_' "Nah, she couldn't like me," Gary replied. "Why do you want to know who she likes…are you _jealous_?"

Ash glared at him. "NO, I'M NOT!" he denied.

"And that just means that you are!"

Ash glared again and was about to protest, but then he softened up and looked down to the ground. "Yeah…I guess I am," he admitted, defeated. "But that just means I feel protective over her, it _doesn't _mean that I'm jealous of the fact that she doesn't like me!"

Gary smirked again. "I knew it."

Ash ignored Gary and continued to babble on. "And that doesn't mean that I _love _her! She's my best friend. I'm not supposed to like her!" Ash protested.

"How do you know that?"

Ash shrugged. "I just know I'm not supposed to. I mean, if I _did _like her…she probably wouldn't like me back."

Gary smiled. "You never know unless you try…" Gary told him. "Oh, and I'd be telling you to tell her your true feelings for her if you _did _like her," Gary said with a smirk.

Ash glared at him. "I don't like Dawn! She's just my best friend. The girl I like is Misty!"

"If you like _Misty _so much, why don't you ask her out to the dance?"

Ash grinned. "Fine, I will! After lunch!" he declared and walked out to the beach, taking a walk. He needed to think...and comprehend what just happened between him and Gary.

* * *

"Dawn?" Misty called out, lightly knocking on the blue-haired co-ordinator's room door. It was afternoon and she, Ash, Brock, Dawn, and Gary had finished eating lunch. After lunch, Dawn had gone into her room to take a short shower. Thirty minutes had past and now Misty was wondering if Dawn was finished, so she could hang out with her and get to know her more.

In just a couple seconds, the door opened revealing the beautiful co-ordinator. Her long, silky blue hair was down and in its usual way. She wore her usual black top, pink skirt outfit except her scarf and white beanie weren't worn this time. She smiled a sweet, true smile once she saw the redhead. "Hey Misty," she happily greeted.

Misty smiled, her sea green eyes shining. "Hey Dawn, do you want to go shopping with me?" she asked. "So we could spend some time with each other."

Dawn grinned. "Sure! I'd love to! This would be a great opportunity to shop for our outfits for the dance tomorrow!" she cheered. "Let me get my purse first." Dawn walked back into her room, searching for her purse.

Misty smiled and waited patiently as Dawn did so. She was glad Dawn was so eager to spend time with her. Usually, people assumed she, Misty, was still the hot tempered girl she was when she was young, but Misty knew that she was now different. Misty had changed and matured as she grew. She was less hot tempered than before and knew how to control her temper.

"Hi Misty," a familiar voice greeted her.

The redhead turned her head to the side, and saw Ash standing beside her. She smiled. "Oh, hi Ash," she greeted.

The raven haired boy smiled. "Listen, I was wondering…do you wanna go to the dance with me tomorrow?" he asked nervously, looking down to the ground.

Misty's sea green eyes widened, she wasn't expecting Ash to ask her out to the dance. She thought he was going to ask out Dawn! _'But I guess he isn't.'_

Misty grinned the biggest smile she could smile. "Yes, I'd love to!" she eagerly replied.

Ash smiled and laughed. "That's great!" he cheered, and then hugged Misty. A red blush crept up the redhead's cheeks.

"Um, guys? What's going on?" a voice interrupting the two. "Why is Ash trying to suffocate you, Misty?"

Ash pulled away and looked over to the blue haired beauty, grinning. "Oh, hey Dawn," he greeted.

Dawn smiled. "Hi Ash…would you two mind telling me what just happened?"

Misty laughed. "Dawn, Ash just asked me out to the dance!" she cheered.

Dawn froze, shocked.

Dawn didn't understand the way she felt. Why was she shocked? Why was she surprised? She had known this was coming…she had expected Ash to ask Misty out. Dawn shook her head and just pushed those thoughts away, and gave a weak smile, hiding her jealousy and disappointment. She wanted to be happy for her friends, and she wanted what was best for them.

"That's awesome," Dawn softly replied, slight disappointment hinted in her voice. And if you looked deep into her sapphire blue eyes, you'd see the pain and sadness in them…the pain hiding inside of the blue-haired girl.

"We should get going now, Dawn," Misty told her, starting to walk towards the door.

"Where're you guys going?" Ash asked Dawn.

She grinned. "We're going to the shops near this summer resort to shop for our outfits tomorrow," she replied. "Oh, and I'll make sure Misty gets something that'll catch your eye for sure!" She winked when she said that and Ash blushed when she did.

"Well, I'm going to play with Pikachu and the rest of my Pokemon at the Poke Park near the clubhouse at the beach," he told her. "Bye Dawn!" He unexpectedly gave her a small, friendly hug (and her cheeks turned to a light red as he did) before he walked out to the patio.

Dawn stared off after the raven haired boy, and smiled. He was always so amazing, and he was always so fond of Pokemon. He was just so sweet and kind, and was so loyal to his family and friends.

Ash never ceased to amaze the Dawn.

"Bye Ash," she breathed out, and followed Misty out of the front door.

_Drew walks by me_

_Can he tell that I can't breathe?_

_And there he goes so perfectly_

_The kind of flawless I wish I could be_

_

* * *

_

"That looks beautiful on you, Misty!" Dawn exclaimed at the dress Misty was wearing.

Dawn and Misty were in one of their favorite dress shops, and after about two hours they had found something that they actually liked. So now they were in the dressing rooms, trying on their dresses to see if it was the one they truly wanted.

Misty smiled at Dawn's enthusiasm. "You really think so?"

Dawn nodded. "Yes! It'll really knock 'em dead…especially Ash!" she winked.

Misty blushed at Dawn's statement, and then smiled. "Thanks Dawn," she replied appreciatively.

Dawn grinned. "No problem!" she told Misty.

"I'll go change back now, so we can buy the dresses," Misty said to Dawn. "You'll wait here?"

Dawn nodded. "Sure."

Misty smiled, and went back in the dressing room to change back to her clothes.

When Dawn was sure Misty was in her dressing room, the smile on her face immediately wiped off her face and she let her disappointment show on her face. The blue-haired co-ordinator sighed. She knew she couldn't keep this up…she couldn't keep hiding what she really felt. One day she would have to fess up to Ash about her feelings for him.

And no matter how much it hurt her, she had to accept the fact that Ash didn't love her. Ash loved Misty. Dawn was just Ash's best friend, the best friend who was always there for him, always there by his side, always supporting him. Dawn wanted what was best for Ash…and for Misty. She would accept what they wanted, what made them happy.

And if Ash liked Misty and Misty liked him back…Dawn knew that she would just have to accept that fact, and that she would be happy for Ash…no matter what she felt.

"But why is it so hard to be happy for them?" Dawn whispered to herself, burying her head in her hands and small tears forming in her eyes. She really wanted to break down and cry, but she couldn't…for the sake of Misty and Ash. She knew that she'd ruin her friendship with Ash and Misty if she told them about her feelings and if they found out what Dawn felt for Ash.

She just _couldn't _admit it…she _knew_ that she shouldn't.

"What am I going to do?" she muttered unhappily.

"Dawn? What's wrong is everything okay?" she heard Misty ask her in a worried tone.

Dawn quickly wiped away her tears. Then, she looked up to the redhead and faked a smile. "I'm fine, I'm sorry I had you so worried," she lied. "I just got something in my eye, that's all."

Misty eyed her suspiciously, then shrugged it off and smiled. "Okay," she replied. "Come on. Let's go to the check out counter so we can shop at some other stores!"

Dawn smiled and stood up and picked up the dress and pair of shoes she had chosen to buy. "Okay!"

* * *

"So, how did you meet Ash?" Dawn casually asked Misty as she sipped some of her soda.

The two of them were in a fast food restaurant right across from the summer resort they were staying in. After hours of shopping for clothes and finding the perfect outfit for the dance tomorrow, they had finally ended their shopping spree and decided to stop and eat dinner. They had started to get to know each other in a friendly conversation.

"Well, I was fishing somewhere near Pallet Town and I thought I got a bite. I reeled it in, and it was really Ash and his Pikachu!" Misty explained.

Dawn laughed a surprised laugh. "Really?"

The redhead nodded. "Yeah, and it turns out they just escaped from a flock of angry Spearow!" she continued. "Anyway, I wasn't really concerned for Ash when I saw him…but I was really concerned for Pikachu, because he looked like he was injured badly, so was Ash."

"Oh…that must've been a horrible time for Pikachu…and for Ash," Dawn said.

"Yes, it probably was. So I told him that he should take his Pikachu to the nearest Pokemon Center and that was in Viridian City," Misty told Dawn. "So he stole my bike and placed Pikachu in the basket and started biking as fast as he could to Viridian City!"

"Ash stole your bike?" Dawn exclaimed. "Well, his Pikachu fried mine with Thunderbolt!"

Misty laughed. "Same here! So I found my fried bike and went to the Pokemon Center in Viridian City to look for Ash, and I told him I wouldn't stop traveling with him until he got me a new bike…and in the end, he did."

Dawn laughed. "He never got _me _a new bike, but he doesn't need to," she told Misty.

Misty smiled. "So, how did you meet Ash?"

"Long story, short: I rescued his Pikachu from Team Rocket," Dawn replied. "And ever since then, we've been traveling around Sinnoh with Brock: I cheered Ash on in his Gym Battles, he cheered me on in my contests. He even did two contests with me: my first contest in Jublife City and the Wallace Cup in Lake Valor with me and May! And he's helped me so much, he trains with me and gave me advice…he even helped me get through a small depression I had."

"Sounds to me that you and Ash are the best of friends," Misty commented.

Dawn gave a weak smile. "Yeah, we're best friends…nothing more," Dawn replied. "So Ash is your date to the dance tomorrow?"

Misty grinned. "Yeah, I'm so glad he asked me out to the dance…even though we're just going as two friends," she told Dawn. "You see, I sort of have a…a crush on Ash."

"Since when?"

"Well, since I started traveling with him," Misty admitted. "And I've missed him so much after we left each other."

"Oh," Dawn breathed out. "Well, you should know…he likes you, too. He's told me."

Misty raised an eyebrow. "Really? I thought he liked you."

Dawn's sapphire blue eyes widened. "WHA? NO WAY!" she protested. "Ash Ketchum _does NOT _like me like that!"

"Oh really? But from the way I see it, it looked like you two were more than just friends," Misty explained. "You guys have a special bond that Ash and I didn't have, we just bickered and teased each other most of the time...though we still hung out with each other and cared deeply for one another. You guys are always giving each other high fives, cheering each other, spending time alone together…and sometimes even hugging."

Dawn looked down to the ground. "Well, that's all true…but that's what _best friends_ do. Besides, if a guy teases you, that probably means that he likes you," Dawn explained. "Ash and I are just best friends…and that's all he'll ever see me as." Dawn frowned as she said that last sentence.

Misty studied the girl in front of her. _'Why's she so depressed?' _Misty thought. Misty observed Dawn, she looked sad as she talked about Ash liking Misty…and Ash only seeing her as a best friend.

That's when Misty realized it.

"Ash doesn't love you…" Misty started, "But _you love him_!"

* * *

**Me: HAHAHA! Cliffhanger! Sorry, I felt like doing that. Dawn and Misty got a little **_**girl **_**time together :] I AM NOT TRYING TO BASH MISTY AT ALL! Misty is one of my favorite Pokemon characters, she's awesome :D**

**Misty: *smiles* Aw, that's so sweet of you.**

**Me: Thanks, it's 'cause girls are nice and sweet (most of them)…and I'm one of those sweet girls.**

**Dawn: Oh, me too!**

**Ash: *staring at Dawn dreamily* You sure are…**

**Gary: Please review!**

**Brock: And if there's any single ladies at the age of seventeen or above, CALL ME!**

**Croagunk: *knocks Brock out***


	4. Change of Plans

**Me: Sorry for not updating for a long time, school's been getting in the way! I don't really get the point of having school for 180 days…it takes up too much time!**

**Gary: Which is why I'm glad that I don't live in your world.**

**Me: Is that supposed to be an insult? *glares at him***

**Gary: *becomes nervous* Maybe…maybe not.**

**Me: *sighs* Okay, fine. I won't take it as an insult, I won't slap you on the head this time.**

**Gary: *grins* YESSS! *starts happy dancing around like an idiot***

**Me: Ermm…okay, that was disturbing…even though he frightens me at times, I **_**still **_**wish I lived in the Pokemon world.**

Disclaimer: I don't own the song. And, I do not own Pokemon (…I really still wish I did!)

**Ash: Why— *interrupted by Dawn kissing him on the lips***

**Me: Aw, cute. ;)**

**Ash: *blushing madly* Wh-What was that for?**

**Dawn: *smirking* So **_**you **_**would stop asking her that stupid question you bring up every time she shows that "Disclaimer Thing".**

**Ash: *grins mischievously* …then maybe I should keep asking that stupid question so you'll kiss me some more!**

**Dawn: *laughs* Yeah…that won't happen. *hits Ash on the head***

**

* * *

**

"Ash doesn't love you…" Misty started, "But _you love him_!"

Dawn stared at Misty in shock. How had the redhead known about her feelings for the raven haired boy they both loved? Did Brock and Gary secretly tell Misty behind her back? Or did Misty figure it out herself?

'_Was it __**that **__obvious?'_ she wondered, blushing a light shade of pink in embarrassment.

"Well, _do _you?" Misty pressed on, eager to find out.

The blunette sighed and looked at Misty with defeat. "Yes, I do love Ash," Dawn breathed out, her voice slightly shaking due to the worry and nervousness slowly filling up in her body. She wasn't sure how Misty would react to her response. She knew it would probably have a big impact on her friendship with the redhead…and maybe even her friendship with Ash.

And Misty…Misty wasn't even sure how to react to what Dawn said. She wasn't sure if she should feel excited and happy for Dawn, knowing that Dawn and Ash could be a great couple, maybe a better couple than she (Misty) and Ash could be…or feel jealous and angry at the fact that Dawn loved Ash and had a _very good chance_ with him.

Yes, Misty actually was _jealous _of the fact that Dawn was closer to Ash than she was.

Misty knew that there was a strong bond between the blue-haired girl and the raven-haired boy. She could see how close they were ever since she arrived in Sunyshore City! Ash and Dawn were always with each other, always doing things together. They were always supporting each other and cheering each other on. And they always gave each other high fives, and Ash never gave high fives to her or to May…only to _Dawn_.

Misty could even tell how close Ash and Dawn were when Ash had called her and invited her to meet them in Sunyshore City when he, Dawn, and Brock were in a Pokemon Center in Johto, after Ash completed the Sinnoh Battle Frontier there and after Dawn competed in the Johto Grand Festival there also. The way he talked about Dawn…almost sounded as if he was talking about an _angel_.

"You…you love Ash?" Misty breathed out, still in shock, still jealous, still surprised.

Dawn nodded timidly, still afraid of how Misty would react to her response. "Ever since the day I met him…I've felt something for him," she said barely over a whisper. "And now I'm sure it's _love_."

Then, Misty actually did something that Dawn didn't expect.

Misty…_smiled_!

"I knew it!" Misty exclaimed. "I knew you did!"

"Really?" Dawn choked out nervously.

The redhead nodded in reply, still grinning. "Mm-hm!"

"Oh…" Dawn breathed out. "But that doesn't matter now."

"Why?"

Dawn faked a smile. "Well, Ash loves you…not me, remember? He told me himself," she explained. "And you love him, you're _perfect _for each other! You guys should be together."

Misty gave a worried look to Dawn. She knew Dawn was hiding something from her, and she knew that Dawn wasn't being one hundred percent honest…she could see some of the emotions the blunette was hiding just by looking into the girl's sapphire blue eyes, which were full of disappointment and sadness. "Are you sure?" Misty asked. "I mean, what if he lied? What if he really loved _you_?"

Dawn shook her head. "No, he loves you! He'd never lie to me, we're best friends…just best friends," Dawn replied. "And I want what's best for you and for Ash since you two are my friends. If you guys like each other and are meant to be, then I'm fine with it…even though it means that _I_ can't be with Ash, I'll _still _be fine with it. I want you two to be happy. No need to worry!"

Misty started to feel guilty and sorry for Dawn, and developed a newfound respect for her after what she had just said. The redhead couldn't believe that Dawn would give up the person she loved to _her_, did Dawn really deserve this? She was being so…so generous, willing to give up anything just to make her best friends happy. Misty didn't think she could've done that if she were in Dawn's position.

"Wow Dawn, you're so generous, so nice and loyal," Misty told her. "I don't think I'd be able to do what you just said if I were you. I can't believe Ash doesn't love you, because he _should_."

Dawn blushed at Misty's statement. "Really?"

Misty nodded. "Really," she replied. "Who wouldn't love someone so sweet and kind?"

Dawn still blushed, but grinned. "Aw, thanks Misty."

The redhead shook her head. "No…thank _you_, Dawn! Thank you for being such a great friend. Thank you for letting me be with Ash, even if he is the guy you love. Thanks for _everything_."

This time, Dawn gave a weak smile. "No problem," she beamed, though there was melancholy hinted in her voice.

Misty sensed that Dawn still was depressed by the fact that Ash loved her, not Dawn and she started to feel guilty and sorry again.

'_How am I supposed to be with Ash without thinking of how depressed Dawn is, of how devastated she feels, and how much she gave up just to make me and Ash happy?' _Misty wondered. _'And I think Ash __**doesn't **__really love me…well, if he didn't he wouldn't have asked me out to the dance and he did. But, it still looks like he loves Dawn more than me…and—'_

And that's when Misty realized it.

Misty realized what Ash truly felt for her and for Dawn.

And once she did, she started to hatch up a plan, a plan that will get Ash to show what he _really feels_.

Misty looked at the blue-haired girl and smiled. "Come on, Dawn," she started, getting up from the booth seat they were sitting in at the fast food restaurant. "Let's head back to the villa."

Dawn smiled and got up from the booth also. "Okay," she replied.

Both of them gathered their purses and their shopping bags, and headed out of the restaurant, both of them happy: Dawn was happy that Misty didn't get angry when she admitted her feelings for Ash, and Misty was happy and excited about the plan she was hatching up in her mind.

And Misty couldn't wait to put that plan into action.

* * *

"Where the heck are they? It's been _six_ hours since they left!"

"Ash, relax. They're probably heading back now, there's no need to worry."

"Brock, you know how I feel whenever Dawn says that! It makes me worry the _most_!"

Ash and Brock were in the living room of their villa, along with Gary. Brock and Gary were both sitting on the couch, helplessly watching the raven haired boy pace back and forth, worrying about the two girls: Dawn and Misty. They had been gone for a very long time…almost _too long_.

"Brock's right, Ashy Boy! You need to relax. The girls can handle themselves, they have their Pokemon with them anyway," Gary added.

Ash still continued to pace. "I know Misty can take care of herself…but Dawn's the one I worry about the most," Ash explained. "She's not that strong and not as experienced as Misty when it comes to traveling alone. What if they get separated and Dawn's gets left behind? What if she gets hurt? She _needs me _there with her, needs me to protect her! I don't want her to get hurt!"

"Really Ash? You think I'm not that strong? You think I'll get hurt if _you're _not there to protect me?"

Ash froze and turned around to see Dawn standing merely a couple inches away from her with her arms crossed, and Misty stood behind Dawn, smirking at Ash…as if saying _Good luck with that_.

Ash started to blush madly. "Uh…w-well—" he stammered.

Dawn grinned. "Well…I think what you said was real _sweet_," she told him. "You're a real great friend, Ash."

"N-No problem!" he stuttered once again, and held his hand up in the air for a high five.

Dawn smiled and gave Ash a high five.

"I was really worried about you, Dawn. You guys were gone for so long," Ash told her sincerely. "What if you got hurt?"

"Well, I'm here and I'm _not _hurt."

"Well, yeah," Ash replied. "But what if you _did_ get hurt?"

Dawn was about to reply, but then Misty stepped in and interrupted. "You were worried _only for Dawn_? What about _me_?" Misty asked, feeling left out.

Ash looked at Dawn, and then looked at Misty. "Of course I was worried about you, Misty. Dawn's my best friend and I'm always looking out for her. And it's the same thing for _you_. If you got hurt, I wouldn't be able to bear with myself for not being there to protect you," he said as he walked towards her, embracing her into a hug.

Misty blushed and hugged him back. "Thanks Ash, that means a lot to me," she breathed out.

Dawn looked at the two, wishing that she was the one Ash was hugging instead of Misty. And Brock and Gary watched the blue-haired girl worriedly, knowing exactly how she felt inside.

_She better hold him tight_

_Give him all her love_

_Look in those beautiful eyes_

_And know she's lucky 'cause…_

_

* * *

_

"Alright, so you know _exactly _what to do?" Misty asked, making sure everything was perfect. The redhead was on the phone, talking about her plans with the one person who would help her get it into action, the one person who would help her plan work.

The boy on the other end chuckled. _"For the millionth time…YES!" _he told her.

Misty giggled. "Sorry, I just want this to work," she explained. "I just want to see what Ash _really _feels. I hope it works!"

The boy smirked. _"It __**will**__," _he said.

Misty smiled. "Okay, so all you have to do is ask her, okay?"

"_Alright, alright, for the thousandth time!"_

Misty laughed once again. "Okay, bye!" she bid, and hung up.

* * *

**Me: Well, that's it!**

**Ash: Why was the chapter so short?**

**Me: Because I don't have that much free time! *whacks him on the head***

**Ash: OW! I still don't get it…**

**Me: Well, you better get it or else I'll keep slapping you! *whacks him once again***

**Dawn: Well, please review!**

**Brock: Any single ladies out there?**

**Croagunk: *knocks Brock out once again***


	5. Best Friends

**Me: I…HATE…SCHOOL!**

**Drew: Tell me about it.**

**Dawn: Hey…why are you here?**

**Drew: *shrugs* I don't know, 'cause I felt like coming to this story.**

**Me and Dawn: Ohhhhhh…**

**Me: Well, back to what I was saying…I HATE SCHOOL! I hate homework, I don't get the point of it! And almost all the boys in my class act so childish and immature! They were messing around with me all day! WHY DO GUYS HAVE TO ACT SO IMMATURE ALL THE TIME? *angrily throws bricks at random people***

**Gary: …You think I'm immature?**

**Me: *softens up* Not you, Gary. You're awesome! At least you don't act as bad as those stupid boys in my class…*continues to throw bricks***

Disclaimer: I don't own the song. And I do not own Pokemon (I still want to!)

**Ash: Why do you keep-*interrupted by Dawn kissing him again***

**Dawn: I thought you learned your lesson already! *puts her hands on her hips***

**Ash: *grins evilly* I did! I just wanted you to kiss me again! *laughs***

**Dawn: *glares at him* UNBELIEVABLE! *snatches the pile of bricks from Kathy's (that's me, the author!) hands and throws them at Ash***

**Drew: Uh, I think I'll leave now. *runs away and back to May***

**Gary: Hey…that rhymes! "Runs away and back to May", haha!**

**Me: *rolls her eyes* Wow, you're a genius…and I take back what I said about you not acting immature!**

**

* * *

**

It was midnight.

Everyone in Ash's villa was asleep. Ash, Dawn, Misty, and Brock were all in their rooms, exhausted and tired after all the activities they'd done that day. All of their Pokemon were in the backyard, laying on a soft, fleece, twenty-foot long blanket Dawn and Ash had laid out for them to lie on. Ash, Dawn, Brock, and even Misty's Pokemon lay on it, fast asleep under the starry night sky.

It was a serene, peaceful night, and everyone in the Sunyshore Beach Resort spent it with a good night's sleep.

Well…_almost_ everyone.

A certain blue-haired girl could not fall asleep. She had too many thoughts on her mind that troubled her, too many thoughts that kept her from getting a good night's rest. Dawn never knew that thoughts could be so bothersome.

She rolled over on her queen sized bed so that her body would be facing the nightstand in her room. She squinted at the digital clock that was on the nightstand, trying to make out what the clock read through the darkness. Once she saw that the time was 12:01 AM, she decided to go for a walk to try to get the bothersome thoughts out of her head.

She sighed and pushed off the soft white sheets that lay on top of her. "I guess I could go out for some air," she muttered to herself as she climbed out of bed.

She slid on a black jacket over her light blue tank top and short cotton dark blue shorts and slid on her black flip flops. Then, she walked out of her room, out of the dimly-lit villa and into the backyard, careful to not wake up anyone or the Pokemon that lay in the patio.

Once Dawn walked out to the stairs that led to the boardwalk which stretched out to the beach, a light sea breeze blew on her, brushing against her cream and roses skin and playing around with her midnight blue hair. The breeze calmed her. For some reason, Dawn always found solace in the beach. She liked the soft sea breeze that was always there, the soothing roaring of the waves, the tickle and delight she always felt from the tide brushing against her skin, and the soft and grainy feel of the white sand.

She sighed and was just to walk up the stairs to go down the boardwalk and to the beach, but then a familiar voice stopped her.

"And just where do you _think_ you're going?"

Dawn froze in her steps and slowly turned around, only to see…

"Ash!" she yelped in surprise.

The raven-haired boy was standing in front of her with a half-eaten sandwich in his hand. He and Dawn were just a mere few inches apart, so close that they could feel each other's breath and body heat. Ash immediately locked eyes with Dawn once she faced him, but she timidly turned her head to the side and started to blush once she realized how close they were.

"What…What are you doing here?" Dawn softly breathed out as she turned her head back to his face, looking into his sparkling brown eyes with her sapphire blue ones. "I thought you were asleep," she said as she brushed a midnight blue strand of her hair out of her face, for the light sea breeze blew on them once again.

"I was getting a midnight snack in the kitchen because I got hungry—"

Dawn smirked and interrupted. "As usual…you're always hungry!"

Ash looked at the blunette and laughed at her remark. "I know! Anyway…I was getting a midnight snack in the kitchen. But then I saw you walk out into the backyard and I decided to follow you to see what you were up to," he explained, and then gulped down the sandwich that was in his hand. "So, why are you out so late at night?"

The smirk on Dawn's face wiped off as Ash questioned her. She sighed and turned her head away once again. "Uh…well, I had a lot on my mind and I couldn't sleep…so I decided to get some fresh air."

Ash nodded, and looked at Dawn once again. And once he saw her, he immediately became worried for his best friend. He could see that Dawn wasn't as happy as she usually was. He could see that she was saddened, depressed, and he could also see pain showing in her sapphire blue eyes.

Ash frowned. "Dawn, what's wrong?" he asked her in a concerned tone.

Dawn's eyes widened and her head jolted up. "Nothing's wrong!" she reassured him as she faked a smile. "No need to worry!"

Ash continued to frown. "And that's when I worry the _most_," he told her. "Come on, Dawn! I know you better than anyone, you're my best friend! Tell me what's wrong."

Dawn looked at the raven haired boy and sighed. "Maybe later…" she replied softly. "Let me get some fresh air first."

She started to walk up the wooden stairs that led to the boardwalk, but then Ash grabbed her wrist. She sighed once again and turned her head to look at Ash. "What now?" she asked impatiently.

"Do you want some company?" he asked her as he let go of her wrist.

Dawn looked at him hesitantly, unsure if she should let him walk with her or not.

Then she flashed Ash a smile and nodded. "Yes," she replied. "Some company would be nice."

Ash laughed and smiled back at her and walked up to the blunette's side. They walked down the boardwalk together and then walked down to the beach, enjoying the peaceful and serene atmosphere around them. The silver moon and the twinkling stars shone on the dark blue sky shone down on them. The waves roared and the light sea breeze blew, brushing against Ash and Dawn's skin.

Neither of them talked, a silence lay in between them. But it was no awkward silence, it was a comforting, peaceful one. They didn't need conversations to enjoy each other's company. They were both happy, enjoying each other's presence.

After many minutes of walking, the two best friends became exhausted and decided to rest in the backyard of their villa. Ash and Dawn sat on the wooden bench swing, and Ash lightly swung the bench swing by pushing his feet against the grainy white sand as they talked.

"So, are those thoughts still worrying you?" he asked Dawn as he put his arms around the back of the bench swing, and around Dawn too.

Dawn felt her cheeks warm up and jumped up a little in surprise as she felt Ash's arm lightly brush against her back. "Yeah…but not as much as before," she admitted.

Ash turned his head from the dark blue midnight sky and to Dawn and locked his eyes with hers. "Tell me what's wrong."

"Why?" she asked him, not wanting to reveal what bothered her. "Why do I have to?"

Ash continued to stare into her eyes, and she could see his dark brown eyes filling up with worry and concern. "Because you're my best friend and I care about you," he told her sincerely, he stopped swinging the bench swing and continued to look in her sapphire blue eyes. "Don't you know that? I get so worried about you when you're not feeling well. I want to be there for you, I don't like seeing you hurt. So tell me what's wrong."

Dawn was taken aback by what the raven-haired boy had just said. It was just so meaningful, so sincere, so…_sweet_. Dawn stared at Ash in awe and she smiled, her eyes shimmered as she did. "Wow Ash," she breathed out, "Thanks. That means _a lot _to me."

Ash grinned back. "No problem," he told her. "Now tell me what's wrong."

Dawn's smile changed into a weak smile and she turned away from Ash and looked out to the restless beach in front of them. She sighed and leaned her head against the arm that was around her back which belonged to Ash. "Well…my _friend_ is actually the one with the problem, but I'm worried about _her_," Dawn explained.

Ash raised an eyebrow. "Do I know that friend?"

Dawn laughed and continued to look out to the beach. "Yeah…you know her more than you think."

"Well, I don't _think_ I know her," Ash muttered.

Dawn laughed once again, glad that Ash was so dense all the time. _'He'd never figure out this __**friend **__of mine is actually __**me**__,' _the blunette thought as she laughed.

"Well, that's okay," she told him. "Anyway, my_ friend _is in love with her _best friend_…she loves him so much. She says that he's always on her mind, and she loves everything about him. She says his personality is amazing. He's really sweet and caring. She also says he's brave and daring. And he's always there for his friends, he's a really _amazing_ guy. And he loves Pokemon so much. And she says he looks handsome too." Dawn blushed as she said all of this, though it was too dimly lit to see and Dawn was thankful for that.

Ash looked off to the beach. "He sounds like a great guy," he said, jealousy forming inside of him. He suspected that Dawn was developing feelings for this _guy _also…and Ash couldn't feel overprotective about her. He didn't want her to like that guy…but he didn't even know this guy. Ash didn't know why he felt this way over Dawn. Was he…jealous? Maybe Gary was right, Ash _did _like Dawn.

Ash froze once he thought that.

That couldn't be true! He can't like Dawn, Dawn is his best friend. For crying out loud, Ash liked Misty, _not _Dawn!

'_Or maybe I __**do**__,' _Ash wondered. _'Maybe I __**do **__love Dawn.' _That thought roamed around in Ash's head, but then he shook it out of his head and pushed all those thoughts away.

"Okay, so your _friend_ loves her best friend," Ash said. "How's that supposed to be a problem?"

Dawn laughed and turned her head to look at him. "I didn't get to that part yet."

"Oh…" Ash breathed out.

Dawn laughed once again at his expression and turned her head back to the beach. "Okay, so anyway, my _friend_ loves her best friend. But…it looks like he loves someone else, not her. And that girl is in love with my friend's best friend also," Dawn explained, replacing her smile with a frown. "My friend doesn't know what to do, it seems like she has no chance with the guy she loves. And she knows if she tells her best friend that she loves him, it'll ruin her friendship with him. She's asking me for advice, but I don't really know what to tell her. What do you think she should do?"

"Well, I think your _friend _shouldn't jump to conclusions like that," Ash told her.

Dawn became confused. "What do you mean?"

"You said that it _looks _like her best friend loves someone else...and you also said that it _seems _like she has no chance with him," Ash explained. "Maybe it's just all in her mind."

Dawn sighed, uncertain. "Maybe you're right…"

"I think your _friend _should tell the guy that she loves him, no matter what," Ash told Dawn. "Then he'll tell her if he loves her back or not. I bet if he doesn't love her back, they'll still be good friends." He grinned a reassuring smile as he told her that.

Dawn smiled, and caught Ash off guard by snaking her arms around his neck and hugged him. "You're right, thanks Ash," she breathed out. "Thanks for everything."

Ash blushed, but then wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her back. "No problem."

* * *

It was the day of the dance.

The morning sun shun down on the beach and the summer resort. It was the perfect day to go swimming, and in fact…that's exactly what Ash and his friends were doing right now!

Ash, Dawn, Brock, Misty, and Gary were in the summer resort at the swimming pool while their Pokemon played in a water park for Pokemon that was right beside the pool. Ash, Misty, and Gary were all swimming in the water, splashing water on each other and trying to soak one another. Brock was stretching to prepare to swim, but then he saw a bunch of cute girls and went off to flirt with them.

And Dawn…Dawn was sitting on the edge of the pool, letting her feet dangle in the pool and wiggling them in the cool water. She brushed her hands against the pink one piece swimsuit she was wearing to fix it up and tied her long midnight blue hair into a ponytail.

But why wasn't she swimming with Ash and the rest of them?

Well…she was too busy panicking about the dance.

No one had asked her to be her date to the dance yet, and she couldn't go to the dance tonight if she didn't have a date. Sure, a couple handsome guys had asked her, but she rejected them. They were all so cocky and arrogant that she didn't even want to talk to them. And she hardly knew them.

Dawn sighed. She knew she would still be dateless by the time the dance started. She looked down at her feet in the clear blue water and rested her chin on her hands. "How am I supposed to go to the dance?" she muttered to herself. "Misty wanted me to come, and Ash also did, too…"

"Dawn!" a voice called out.

The blunette's head jolted up in response to the yell.

Dawn saw that a familiar auburn haired boy was swimming over to her. He finally reached her and sat down on the edge of the pool beside her. "Hey," Gary greeted her with a smile.

Dawn gave a weak smile. "Hi," she replied softly.

"How come you're not hanging with us?" he asked her. "Don't you want to?"

Dawn looked down at her feet in the pool again. "I do! It's just…" she started, "…I don't have a date to the dance yet. I don't think I'll be able to go. And Misty and Ash wanted me to! What am I supposed to do?"

"Wow, I thought someone would've asked you by now," Gary remarked.

Dawn shrugged. "Well, a lot of guys asked me yesterday and today…but I turned them down," Dawn explained.

"Why?"

"Because they were just so…so cocky and arrogant!" she told him. "They all acted so immature and childish!"

"Oh…" Gary breathed out. "Well, I don't have a date yet either."

Dawn looked at the auburn haired boy and laughed. "Really?" Dawn asked in surprise. "But what about all those girls that are always all over you!"

"You mean those _fan girls_?" Gary replied. "Nah, I never liked them. They were always so annoying."

"Well I guess we're both not going to be able to go to the dance tonight," Dawn breathed out as she looked down at her and Gary's reflections in the pool. They both looked disappointed and sad. They sat in silence, trying to come up with a way to find a date for the upcoming event.

Finally, Gary broke the silence.

"We're both dateless, right?" Gary brought up, a satisfied grin building up on his face.

Dawn raised an eyebrow. "Um, yeah," Dawn said. "I think I _know _that already."

"Then we should go to the dance _together_!" Gary told her, revealing his plan.

Dawn stared at him in confusion. "Uh…I don't think we—"

Gary interrupted her. "Don't worry, we'll only go as _friends_."

This time, Dawn smiled. "Okay, sure!"

"Cool!" Gary replied, and then a sly, mischievous grin came on his face. "And by the way, we could make Ashy Boy _real jealous_."

Dawn blushed and gave a weak smile. "You…you really think so?"

Gary nodded. "I _know _so," he said. "Now come on, let's go back to Ashy Boy and Misty!"

* * *

**Me: Well, that's it. Sorry this chapter totally **_**sucked**_**. I know…nothing really happened.**

**Dawn: Well, something sort of **_**did **_**happen.**

**Ash: And this chapter really **_**did **_**suck.**

**Me: *glares at Ash* You're so mean! *throws a brick at him***

**Misty: Well, please review!**

**Gary: And review how awesome I looked at the swimming pool! **

**Me: *throws a brick at Gary***

**Brock: Any single ladies out there?**

**Dawn: I don't think you'll find anyone out there, Brock.**

**Misty: *laughs* She's right, you haven't even managed to get a girl to like you in **_**our **_**world!**

Well, please review on how **horrible **this chapter was, haha! The little button is right there, under this sentence! All you have to do is **click it**! :D


	6. Jealousy

**I bet all of you guys want to throw piles of bricks at me for not updating for so long xD… *runs and hides behind Ash and Gary before any angry Pearlshippers can beat her up* I'm sorry for not updating for awhile…it's 'cause of stupid schoolwork and homework, they can be so time-consuming :P And I had a writer's block...that's why it took me such a long time to update :/ I wasn't sure how to continue the story…but it's almost finished anyway, just a few more chapters to go :)**

**And about the Egoshipping...I've decided to put HINTS of Egoshipping since...: 1) some of you guys wanted Egoshipping 2) some of you guys said it was okay to have Egoshipping 3) some of you guys just wanted HINTS...and 4) some of you guys wanted NO EGOSHIPPING AT ALL. So, there'll just be HINTS, Gary and Misty won't date, kiss, get together, get in a relationship, etc. (but I might change my mind about that...xD)**

**Anyway, I hope you like this horrible chapter ^^**

Disclaimer: I don't own the song. And, I do not own Pokemon (and I still want to!)

**Ash: …You know what? I'm not even going to **_**bother **_**asking anymore!**

**Me, Misty, and Dawn: *cheer happily and high fives each other***

**Ash: *glares at us* Hey…that's **_**me and Dawn's **_**thing! **_**We're **_**the ones who high five each other all the time! We even sang a **_**song **_**about it!**

**Me: Oh yeah, "High Touch"! I love that song! *smiles happily***

**Misty: Me too!**

**Gary: *nods in agreement* Yeah, it's catchy!**

**Ash: Wasn't it fun to sing it with each other, Dawn?**

**Dawn: *blushes* Yeah…**

Oh, and just in case you're wondering,  
Dawn is **16**; Ash, Misty, and Gary are **17**; and Brock is **19** :)

* * *

Gary sat in the backyard of Ash's villa, waiting for Ash and the rest of them to come out.

He sat on the grainy white sand, not caring if his black dress pants, his long sleeved white collared shirt, or if his dark red tie would get messed or not.

And he was becoming _impatient_.

He had been waiting for half an hour already! It was 6:45 and the dance started in _fifteen _minutes. If they didn't leave in five minutes, they were sure to arrive late. Gary yawned and started running his fingers through the white grainy sand, playing around with it out of boredom.

"Why the heck are they taking so long?" Gary muttered impatiently. He sighed and watched the sunset over the restless beach.

The dance they were going to was called "The Sunyshore Beach Ball" **(A/N: Haha, I know it sounds like the word "Beach ball", it was supposed to xD)**. It was said to start at 7:00 to midnight, and it was open to anybody who wanted to come. The cost for the tickets were five dollars for each person, but Gary, Ash, and the rest of them could go for free since they all were renting a villa in the resort the dance was taking place in.

The dance was a formal dance, and it had many requirements. One requirement was that they had to dress _formal_, absolutely _no one _could wear jeans, sneakers, etc. Guys had to wear tuxedos, ties, dress pants, collared shirts, etc. and girls had to wear dresses, heels, and so on.

Gary laughed as he recalled what happened between Ash and Misty the day before…when Misty tried to force Ash to wear a stupid, frilly bright blue tuxedo that she thought looked absolutely _adorable _on him. And it didn't work out so well…in the end, Ash went out to buy his own outfit.

Another requirement was that they needed to arrive _before _or _right at _7:00 PM, or they were sure to be locked out of the ballroom in the clubhouse the dance was being held in. Gary sighed, _'And __**we're **__going to be locked out if we don't __**leave soon**__…'_

One other requirement was that the guests who were coming to the ball were required to have…a _date_.

Gary, Ash, Dawn, Misty, and even Brock (Gary and the rest of them were surprised when they found this out) had all gotten dates to the ball, so they were all able to go. Brock was going with Autumn, an eighteen year old from the Maid Café in Sinnoh that he, Ash, and Dawn had been to before in their past journey. When Brock and Autumn first met at the Maid Café, Brock had volunteered to help train Autumn on how to get her Miltank to trust her.

And after all of Brock's help…Autumn had developed a crush on Brock.

Brock had met Autumn once again at the resort they were staying in, where she was taking a break from the Maid Café. They were glad to meet with each other again, and they talked with each other so they could catch up with each other. And after all the hanging out they did during the past week at the Sunyshore Beach Resort…Brock had realized what he felt for her as well. So, he asked her out to the ball and she happily replied with a "Yes".

And as they all knew, Ash and _Misty _were going to the dance with each other, although Ash was hesitant about the redhead being his date to the ball. But in the end, Ash asked Misty out…and well, you know the rest.

But what about Dawn…and Gary? Who were their dates? Who were those two going to the ball with?

Gary could've gone with that hot blonde at the beach he met the other day. He could've gone with that brunette he met at the pool. He could've gone with a whole bunch of other girls…maybe even all his _fan girls_. And maybe he could've asked out a certain redhead before a certain raven-haired boy did (but Gary knew she was likely to say "no" if he _did _ask her out). But out of all the girls in the city…he chose _Dawn_. Why in the world did he decide to go with Dawn? Why didn't he choose someone else? Why did it have to be _her_?

Gary asked himself those questions once he had asked her out at the pool that day. It's not that Dawn wasn't beautiful, _everyone _knew she was. Even Ash saw how beautiful Dawn was, and he was the most clueless, dense boy (when it came to _girls, crushes, and love…_) they had ever met. Misty even envied her beauty, but Gary thought that _Misty _was the most beautiful girl in the whole town. Anyway, it wasn't that Dawn was annoying…it was just that he didn't like Dawn _that way_. Gary and Dawn, they were good friends, but…both of them knew that they weren't meant to like each other, and both of them couldn't even _think _of how it'd be if they were a couple…they just couldn't see it.

And both of them knew that they would rather be going with someone else, Dawn wished she could've gone with Ash…but she knew that would never happen in a lifetime. And Gary wished he could've gone with a certain redhead…but Gary and Dawn knew that the people they wanted to have their dates as didn't like them in return.

So they were going to the dance with each other, but merely as good friends. And Gary told Dawn about Misty's Plan…well, _part of _Misty's plan. Gary told her how Misty said they should pretend to flirt around Ash just to see if he'd get jealous or not, to see who he _really _liked. He didn't tell her what Misty was going to do.

…But why was Gary doing all this? He didn't need to, he could've refused to help Misty through with her plan…but he _didn't._

He was doing all of these things just for _her_.

Gary chuckled and laughed at himself. _'I'm such a fool to be helping that girl with her stupid plan…' _he thought to himself. _'But…she's different. She's something special.' _Gary smiled and looked out to the beautiful sunset and the restless beach as he continued to think about the redhead.

"You shouldn't be sitting there, you might ruin those nice pants of yours," a feminine voice breathed out, interrupting Gary's thoughts.

The auburn haired boy smirked once he realized whose voice that belonged to. He stood up and brushed off all the sand that was on his pants with his hands.

"There, see? My pants are clean, hap—" Gary immediately became speechless once he saw the girl who had come out of the villa behind him.

"…Whoa," he breathed out, that was the only thing that came out of his lips, for he was too mesmerized by the beauty of the girl.

The girl in front of him looked so…so _amazing_. Her mid-length orange hair was curled, and pulled back into a ponytail with a red ribbon, but her side-swept bangs remained down and they hovered over her forehead. One strand of her curled hair was left out on each side to frame her head. She wore a red dress with a beautiful design that ended right at her knees, and it was held up by one thick, soft pink gossamer strap that stretched over her right shoulder. On the back of the waist of the dress, a pale pink ribbon was tied into a bow. The red dress complimented her figure, and it brought out those dazzling sea green eyes of hers. She also wore a necklace with one single emerald gem, and she also wore white heels. She just looked so amazing.

"You look…amazing," Gary complimented.

Misty blushed. "Thank you," she replied and walked towards the auburn haired boy. "You don't look that bad yourself." She smiled at him, observing his outfit.

Gary blushed also. "Thanks," he breathed out. They stood in silence, watching the sight of the beach ahead of them. All the water Pokemon were playing around and doing whatever water Pokemon do in the beach. The waves of the glistening blue sea roared and crashed. The sky was a pinkish-orange and the sun was already setting. The light sea breeze of the beach blew against Gary and Misty, brushing against their skin and clothes, and playing around with their hair.

"Where are Ash, Dawn, and Brock?" Gary asked, finally breaking the silence. "We're gonna be late if we don't leave soon."

Misty gave out a soft laugh. "Dawn's just making the finishing touches to her outfit, you know how she's sensitive about the way she looks. Brock is making Pokemon food for all our Pokemon to have while we're gone, and Ash is eating a snack."

Gary chuckled. "It's typical of Ashy Boy to be hungry all the time."

Misty smiled. "Yeah, but that's just who he is. He's a great guy," she replied, smiling dreamily as she thought more and more about the raven-haired boy.

Gary filled with jealousy as the redhead continued to ramble on and on about Ash. Why did she like him so much? What did she see in that boy?

"Gary…do you think I'm doing the wrong thing?" Misty asked softly.

"What do you mean?"

The redhead sighed, and a grimace replaced her eager smile. "It's just…I think Ash really does love Dawn, and you know how much Dawn loves Ash. I think Ash is just using me as an excuse, an excuse for him loving Dawn. Sure, when we were traveling with each other before, I knew he really did have a crush on me…but that was back then. I just feel like I'm coming in between them…but I love him so much, and—"

Misty stopped talking when Gary put his hand on her shoulder. "Just do what you think is right," he told her, his dark black eyes full of sincerity.

Misty blinked, taking in the words he'd said, and then finally smiled a small grin and spoke. "You're right."

Gary grinned and removed his hand from her shoulder. "I know I am," he teased. "Besides, I think your plan is a great one. I think it'll get Ashy Boy to admit who he _really _loves."

Misty nodded. "Yeah…" she breathed out, hoping that she would be the one he loved…but unsure at the same time.

Speaking of _Ashy Boy_…"Hey guys!" a certain raven haired greeted as he walked out of the villa and into the backyard.

Misty and Gary both turned around to face Ash. The raven haired boy was wearing an outfit similar to the one he wore at the Wallace Cup: a black fedora hat, a black tuxedo, a midnight blue tie, black formal dress shoes, and formal white gloves.

Misty smiled and held her hands behind her back. "Hi Ash!"

Ash grinned back at her. "Hey Misty!" he greeted back. "You look nice!"

The redhead blushed. "Thank you, you look nice as well."

"Hey Ashy Boy," Gary greeted.

Ash turned to the auburn haired boy. "Hey Gary," he replied back with a smile.

"Misty's your date to the dance, right?" he asked him casually, even though he already knew the answer. He just wanted to start a conversation with the raven-haired boy instead of watching Ash and Misty stare and blush at each other.

Ash nodded. "Yeah, isn't that awesome?"

Misty blushed at that comment, and Gary faked a smile. "Yeah, that's _really _awesome," Gary said, sarcasm hinted in his voice. "You're a really lucky boy, Ashy Boy."

Ash smirked. "I _know_ I am," he teased. "So, who's your date? Do you even _have _a date?"

Gary glared at him. "Of course I have a date!" he replied. "My date is—"

"Guys, we're ready to go! I'm done making the Pokemon food, and Dawn's finished getting ready," Brock told them as he walked out of the villa, interrupting Gary.

Misty, Gary, and Ash turned their heads to the older brown-haired boy. He wore a light-blue collared long-sleeved shirt, a dark black tie, black dress shoes, and black dress pants. Brock also held a bouquet of red roses in his hand, all of the looking lush and fresh.

"Hey Brock…who are those roses for?" Misty asked him curiously.

"They're for Autumn, aren't they?" Ash said, eyeing Brock suspiciously.

Brock smiled and nodded. "Yeah, they are," he replied.

Misty grinned. "Wow, that's so romantic! Giving a girl a bouquet of roses before a ball…it's just so sweet!" she complimented. "I wish _other guys _would do things as sweet as that for me!"

Misty eyed Ash and Gary as she said those things, and Ash remained as clueless as ever. "Misty, why are you looking at me like that?" Ash asked her innocently.

Gary slapped his forehead, because of the fact that Ash was still the dense boy they all knew and loved (whenever it came to girls, love, crushes, etc.) and because Gary knew _exactly _why Misty was eyeing himself and Ash like that.

Misty giggled at what Gary just did, and then she sighed at Ash's denseness. "Oh…it's _nothing_," Misty lied, holding her hands behind her back once again.

"Sure it's _nothing_…" Gary muttered to the redhead as he walked to her side.

Misty laughed and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I know."

"I hope my hair's not messed up…is it?" a new voice asked. It was a feminine, soft, and sweet voice. It came from the door that led to the backyard they were all standing in. Brock, Gary, Misty, and even Ash all turned their heads to the source of the voice…and all the boys' jaws dropped. Even Misty was awed by the beauty of the source of the feminine voice.

The source of the voice was in fact a girl, a girl with cream and roses skin, sapphire blue eyes, and long silky midnight blue hair. And she looked just so…so _beautiful_. She wore a white dress that was held up by two thin straps, and the dress ended right after her knees. There was a blue ribbon that was around her waist, and it was tied into a neat bow behind her back. And after the ribbon, the dress flowed freely and oh so elegantly. The skirt part of the dress was wrapped in soft gossamer that had small silver sparkles all over it. She wore a silver necklace around her neck with one single sapphire gem. She wore white heels and her long silky straight, midnight blue hair was left down.

Though her outfit was simple, it made the girl look so amazing, and it brought out the blueness of her hair and her sapphire blue eyes. And this beautiful girl was really _Dawn_.

"No…no, your hair's not messed up at all!" Misty reassured the girl, a smile creeping up on her face. "It actually looks really great, I love your hair!"

Dawn beamed, and walked over to the group. "Thanks Misty," she replied. "So, are we ready to go?"

The boys ignored her question, and continued to stare at her with awe. Ash especially was awed by her beauty, he had never seen a girl as beautiful as the blunette standing in front of him. "Wow Dawn…you look _beautiful_," he told her, sincerity in his voice.

Dawn was taken aback by those words. She blushed, looked down to the ground, and innocently held her hands behind her back. She never expected Ash to say something as deep…or sincere as that. "…Really? I am?" she breathed out softly.

Ash smiled and nodded. "You are."

This comment made the blunette blush even more, and she brought her head up to look into the raven-haired boy's dark brown eyes. She smiled and tilted her head. "That's real sweet of you to say, Ash," she replied.

Ash blushed and Dawn continued to blush, both of their faces were a shade of deep red. As Dawn and Ash stood by each other in silence blushing like crazy, Brock and Gary smiled at the two of them and Misty also did as well. She felt happy for Dawn, since the blunette's amazing beauty finally got the boy Dawn loved to say some sweet, romantic comment about her…but Misty did feel a slight pang of jealousy.

To break the silence and the romantic, awkward silence, she decided to speak. "Um, guys? Shouldn't we be heading to the ball now?" Misty reminded them, putting her hands on her hips. "It starts in about seven minutes, and if we don't leave now, we'll probably be locked out of the ballroom."

Brock, Gary, Dawn, and Ash's heads shot up, instantly remembering what the time was. "Oh yeah! We need to go…_now_!" Ash screamed. He ran to Misty's side and grabbed her hand, Misty blushed when he did. "Let's go!"

"Right!" Brock, Gary, and Dawn replied in unison. They all started walking as fast as they could from the backyard of their villa to the Sunyshore Beach Resort Clubhouse, the clubhouse that the ball would be taking place in and the clubhouse that lay right in front of the Sunyshore Beach.

"Brock, where're you gonna pick up Autumn?" Misty asked as they walked to the clubhouse, and as Ash still held her hand.

"She's gonna meet me in the ballroom," Brock replied.

"What about you, Gary? Do you even _have_ a date?" Ash asked the auburn-haired boy, teasing him.

Gary glared at the raven-haired boy. "I _do _have a date!" he shouted.

Ash smirked. "Then where is she?"

"She's standing right beside you," Gary told him.

Standing beside Ash was Misty and Dawn. Ash knew that it _couldn't _have been Misty, since Misty was _his _date, _not _Gary's. So that meant…

"DAWN'S YOUR DATE?" Ash yelled in shock, letting go of Misty's hand as he did. "WHY IS _DAWN _YOUR DATE?"

Gary smirked as he watched the raven-haired boy fume with jealousy. "Relax, we're only going as _friends_," Gary explained.

Dawn laughed as she watched Ash soften up and blush with embarrassment. "Gosh Ash, why do you have to act so overprotective?" she teased him. "Gary's your best friend, so you should trust him with me. It's not like he's gonna do anything bad to me!"

Ash blushed even more, and he hid his face with his black fedora hat as an act from embarrassment. "I know…"

* * *

**Me: Sorry, the chapter was short, but I needed to update ASAP, so no one would get angry at me xD Well, please review! I bet this chapter was horrible...again xD**

**Ash: …Does everyone really think I'm **_**that **_**dense?**

**Dawn: *nods* Yes…when it comes to girls and love, you are!**

**Ash: …Oh. But how can I be dense when it comes to girls if I think that you're pretty?**

**Dawn: *remains speechless and blushes***


	7. Shame Shame Shame

**Kathy: Hey guys! Sorry for not updating for a while…  
I know you want to throw bricks and bricks and more piles of bricks at me *quickly hides behind Ash and Gary*.  
****But it's not my fault! Life was just getting in the way..  
school, feelings of worthlessness, drama, loss of self-esteem, loneliness, family, friends and such.  
I tried to update sooner.. I even started writing some of this chapter on an airplane during late December!  
****But alas, no.. I couldn't come up with anything…  
**…**STUPID WRITER'S BLOCK. -_-***

**Gary: Everyone gets a writer's block once in a while.**

**Kathy: *glares at him* How should you know? You don't even WRITE!**

**Gary: *eye twitches* Yes I do!!**

**Ash: You're lying! I can tell! You always twitch your eye whenever you're not telling the truth!**

**Dawn: Ash, how do you know that?**

**Misty: *smirks* Have you been spying on Gary again, Ash?**

**Ash: *blushes and sweatdrops* WHAT?! NO WAY!!! It's 'cause I've known him since I was three, REMEMBER?! GOD, I'M NOT GAY!!! If I was gay, I wouldn't be in love with Dawn!**

**Brock: Oh, so you DO love Dawn?**

**Dawn: *blushes* W-Wha…?**

**Ash: *blushes once again* Wait.. NO!!! YOU'VE GOT IT ALL WRONG! KATHY, MAKE THEM STOP DOING THAT!**

**Kathy: *giggles* Hehe, sure thing…I'll put the "Disclaimer" Thingamajigger.**

Discaimer: I do not own Pokemon (I still wish I did)

**Ash: When will you tell me why you want to own us?!?!?!**

**Kathy: *grins evilly* NEVER! ..Unless..**

**Ash: Unless what?**

**Kathy: ..UNLESS YOU KISS DAWN!**

**Ash: *blushes* W-WHAT?! NO WAY! N-NEVER!**

**Dawn: *glares at him* What's so bad about kissing me?! *whacks him on the head***

* * *

'_Beautiful.'_

That was the word that came to Ash's mind every time he looked— or maybe "stared" is the appropriate word— at Dawn.

The sight of the blue-haired beauty was just so mesmerizing. It was hard to take his eyes off of her when she had those twinkling sapphire eyes, shimmering long midnight-blue hair, a bright hundred-watt smile, and a flowing white dress to top it all off.

She just looked _amazing_.

'_If only __**I **__was the one dancing with her…' _Ash frowned, and then sighed as he continued to ponder as to why he didn't ask out the blunette to be _his _date for the ball.

Yes, it was true. Ash _regretted _not asking Dawn to be his date. He really wished that he was the one dancing with her instead of Gary, that he was the one twirling her, that he was the one leading her around the dance floor, that he was the one _holding _her in his arms.

But…at the same time, he was sort of happy and fine with his date right now.

He was glad to have such a sweet redhead as his date; the fiery girl he knew since he was ten years old. He hadn't seen her in a while and missed her a lot. So he took the Sunyshore Beach Ball as an opportunity to spend more time with her, and asked her to be his date (and also due to the fact that he was pressurized by Gary to ask out the redhead at that time). And Ash sort of did have a small crush on her.

But now, seeing Dawn, his best friend, being the date of his childhood best friend Gary, he just felt so… so… what _was_ that word?

"Wow, you must really like her," a feminine voice in a timid tone barely above a whisper breathed out.

Ash's dark brown eyes widened, and he quickly turned his head to his left. Once he did, he saw his date, Misty. She looked so beautiful, yet filled up with a bunch of mixed feelings as well. Her sea green eyes didn't have that fire in them like they usually did. Her gossamer red dress didn't really match her calm and intense mood at the moment.

"W-What are you talking about?" he said.

Misty chuckled softly, and winked. "Oh, you know what I'm talking about! I know you're not as dense as you were when we were ten, I know you," she said, and then softly repeated, "I know you."

Ash looked at her with questioning, unsure eyes, and sighed heavily. "It's just that…I-I don't know what I really feel," he summarized. "I'm not sure…"

Misty innocently cocked her head to the side. "About what?" Even though Misty asked, she already knew what was coming. She knew what he was about to say.

"Er…I'm just not sure…about how I feel about you…a-and Dawn," he admitted.

The redhead nodded her head, and tried to meet her eyes with his dark brown ones. But he refused to. He kept looking down at the ground, like he was afraid. "Well, what do you _think _you feel?" she asked. "I mean, you don't have to like me if I'm really just holding you back. You can tell me the truth.

"Actually, scratch that.." she said before he could even answer. "Please tell me the truth. You have to. Or else."

"Misty…it's not that I don't like you. I mean, I did like you…before," he started, nervously, "but that was a long time ago, when we were ten. But now…we've been away for a long time, and people meet new people when their away from each other. And people change, people grow farther apart. And people get closer to the new people they've met. You're still one of my bestest friends ever, you know that. But…it's just that–"

Misty interrupted, a grin building up on her face. "–It's just that you **love Dawn**, right?" she said, beaming at the boy.

All this time, she thought she loved him. But in truth, and in reality, _she didn't_. And just now, he's made her realize it. She's just been living in the past this whole time, still in love with the boy she knew when she was ten. But alas, no; people change over time as they get older. And that boy that she loved has changed. He's not that little wimp anymore, that little sensitive boy that she once knew. He's become stronger, and he was a little different than he was before. He wasn't her love interest. Now…it turns out that he's just like the little _brother she'd never had_.

And that was the truth.

Ash smiled, glad to see her understanding. "You know what Misty?" he started. "I think I _do_."

* * *

Dawn giggled. "Gary, you're such an idiot!"

The blunette and the older auburn-haired boy were in the midst of the crowded dance floor of the ballroom, dancing to the upbeat music playing in the background. Many people in gowns and tuxedos surrounded them, dancing to the music as well. A bunch of scattered spotlights and disco-balls shun down on the happy dancers, somewhat making the place resemble a dance club.

On the other hand, Gary, that genius boy, was pulling off some crazy dance moves. Some that looked sort of creepy, some that looked sort of weird, and some that sort of looked just plain stupid. Let's put it this way; he looked like a break dancer wannabe.

Gary stopped dancing, and stuck his tongue out at the girl. "Thank you, you're oh so kind!" he replied, sarcasm in his voice.

Dawn rolled her eyes, but still kept smirking. "And this is why you don't have a girlfriend."

Gary glared at her. "Yes I do! W-Well, I _did_," he said.

Dawn's sapphire blue eyes widened in surprise. "Really? Who?" she asked, and then a devious grin came up her face. "Was it _Misty_?!"

This time, Gary's eyes widened in shock. "W-WHAT?! N-No way! It couldn't have been Misty, come on. You know she doesn't like me," he protested, yet failed to.

Dawn kept smirking. "Then who was it?!"

Gary frowned hesitantly. "H-Her name was Leaf."

"Tell me about her!"

Gary shrugged and looked at the ground. "Well…I don't like talking about her."

Dawn grimaced. "Why not?"

Gary shook his head, refusing to answer. "I-I'll just tell you about her later, okay?" he said. "Right now, let's just enjoy the ball. And anyway, weren't we supposed to be making Ashy-Boy jealous?" He winked, implying the reason as to why he was her date in the first place.

Dawn let out a small chuckle. "Oh yeah, I forgot," she breathed out, remembering why she'd even decided to come to the ball. In the beginning, she'd decided to stay in their villa while the rest of them went to this Sunyshore Beach Ball; all because she couldn't get _him_ to be her date, all because she didn't have the courage to ask _Ash _to be her date. If Gary hadn't suggested a plan to make Ash jealous…well, she wouldn't be standing in the middle of this beautiful ballroom right now!

Oh, the ballroom…it was more than just _beautiful_.

It was so magnificent, and grand. The immense dome-shaped room was made mostly of marble and shining metals, it was like they were standing in a castle. The ceiling was a golden bronze, and a huge chandelier hung from above. And the whole room was decorated with a beach theme; millions of balloons that were shades of blue were present in the room, tons of silver streamers were scattered about, many models of different kinds of water Pokemon could be seen around the humongous room, and more.

All of a sudden, a familiar sentimental melody drifted throughout the atmosphere. "It's…It's the traditional dance of Sinnoh," she slowly realized. It was a dance, a song, and a melody that she loved ever since she was a child. The sound of the song just touched her, and moved her heart every single time she heard it. She even knew the dance to the song; she's danced it with her father many many times when she was younger.

Gary smiled. "Do you wanna dance?"

Dawn smirked. "If you don't dance like an idiot, then I will," she joked, sticking her tongue out at him.

Gary chuckled. "I promise I won't," he winked. "Anyway, I was dancing like that on purpose."

This time, Dawn laughed. "Sure you were."

In just a few seconds, the beautiful blunette found herself dancing with that brother-like friend of hers, and he was actually dancing _well_. He got every step down just right, and so did she. She was having so much fun, twirling and dancing around the dance floor with Gary, feeling so fluid and carefree. It made her forget of how depressed she was feeling the past week; it made her feel like nothing could ever go wrong.

Suddenly, she felt a gentle grip around her wrist. She turned her head, to see none other than…

"Ash?" she breathed out in shock. She and Gary stopped dancing and started to give their attention to the boy with messy raven-black hair. He looked so handsome, _especially _to Dawn. The black tuxedo really made him look like a gentleman, yet the fedora hat that topped his head represented his individuality; his determined, yet loving personality. His dark brown eyes were full of care and eagerness as he looked at Dawn.

A smile creeped up his face. "Is it okay if I have this dance?" he asked while beaming, tipping his hat in a polite and friendly manner.

Dawn smiled. "Sure, that would be wonderful!" she replied enthusiastically.

Ash beamed, and then looked at Gary as if asking for an approval. The auburn-haired boy, his best friend, grinned and nodded. "Go ahead, Ashy-Boy," he cheered, and then walked off the dance floor.

A new song started as Ash and Dawn began to dance– well, _slow-dance _was the more appropriate term. The new song that began to play was a slow and heartfelt one. It was the type of song that was really meant for only for _two people_ to dance to; a song that was meant for _couples _to dance to.

Dawn blushed as she realized how close she was to him. Her arms were fairly wrapped around his neck, and his were gently around her waist. They softly swayed to the rhythm of the song, the melodious tune sounding throughout the ballroom. As the song played, the ballroom started creating a romantic atmosphere. The lights were dimmed down just enough so it would seem like the whole room was "candle-lit", and many couples started walking out into the dance floor.

'_You know…being here, in __**his **__arms…it actually feels…__**nice**__,' _she told herself, smiling at that thought. She felt so safe, so comfortable…it just felt so _right_. It was different than dancing with Gary; dancing with Gary, it felt like she was dancing with a family member or a brother.

But with Ash…it was just so _different_. The feeling of dancing with him, it was different compared to the feeling she got when she danced with other boys. There were sparks, and there was something special about it that she just couldn't put her finger on.

She just decided to let it go. _'But oh well, I just know that he's…he's something __**different**__.'_

"So…" Ash breathed out, breaking the silence.

"So what?" the blunette asked, smiling with glee.

"So…how are you?" he asked with a grin.

Dawn chuckled softly at the simplicity of his statement. "Hm, really Ash?" she said jokingly. "Is that all you can say?"

Ash laughed. "What's wrong with a little simple 'How are you'?" he replied. "Do you want me to say something else?"

"Sure, go ahead."

Ash grinned. "Okay," he said. "Well, you look beautiful_._"

Dawn blushed. "Thank you, that means a lot to me," she beamed. "Same goes for you. You look really handsome."

Ash smirked. "Heh, I know I am!"

Dawn laughed. "You know, sometimes you can be so full of yourself!"

Ash laughed as well. "So, are you having a good time so far?" he asked.

Dawn nodded. "Yes, I am."

The boy smiled, happy to see that his best friend was finally having some fun. "That's good. I'm glad that you decided to come instead of staying back at the villa. I hate to see it when you're all alone and sad," he told her, and it made him feel so glad once he saw her smile at his comments. "Oh, and how was dancing with Gary?"

The blunette laughed. "Oh…it was— how should I put this— _interesting_. Haha, he had some of the _craziest_ dance moves! It was hilarious, I couldn't stop laughing," she smiled as she reminisced the moment. "But…he's not that bad of a date. He's a really great guy, fun and spontaneous and all. I can't see why you get so frustrated with him sometimes...well, actually I can, but you know what I mean."

Ash faked a smile as he filled up with jealousy. _'It sounds like she likes Gary, there's no way that she could love me_.' "Haha, well I've known him for almost my whole life. So it gets pretty annoying being with him so much, and he'll probably get annoying sooner or later to _you_."

Dawn chuckled. "Really?" she asked. "But to me, it just sounds like you're _jealous_."

Ash's eyes widened once she said that. "N-No way! Why would I be jealous of him?!"

Dawn smirked. "Face it, Ash. You're jealous!" she encouraged. "You're jealous of him spending so much time with _me_."

Ash frowned. "Why would you even say that?"

The smirk on Dawn's face still stayed. "Because I _know _you are."

Ash sighed, and finally pulled away from her. He was tired of this; tired of everyone bothering him, saying that he was "jealous". He was tired of everyone screaming at his face that he loved the beautiful blunette standing right in front of him. He was just tired of _everything_, tired of all the things about his emotions and feelings that have been forced upon him.

Poor boy, he was so confused and frustrated that he didn't even know that the words that would come out of his mouth…the words that he was about to say, were a bunch of _lies_, and just a result of his frustration.

"But guess what; I'm _not_. Why would I be jealous of Gary spending so much time with you? I don't love you; I don't, I don't! I'm tired of everyone trying to force it out of my mouth! I'm tired of them trying to pair me up with you, I'm tired of everything! Why is it such a big deal?! Being in love with a girl like you, there's nothing special about it! There's nothing special about you!" he yelled angrily, steaming off.

Dawn couldn't believe what she was hearing. Was Ash…telling her off? She didn't know what to feel; sad, angry, depressed, devastated? She was so confused…and so hurt…every word he said brought her more and more pain. It just hurt so bad. Her sapphire blue eyes started to water, and tear up. "B-But I thought—"

He glared at her. "But you thought _what_? You thought that I actually loved _you_?!" he snapped back at her. "Well, I can't and I don't! You shouldn't love me either, you shouldn't…" He stopped once he saw the expression on her face.

She looked heartbroken; tears were streaming down her face, the gleam that was usually in her blue orbs was replaced with devastation, her lips were quivering, and her breath was quickened. She looked so hurt, so fragile, so weak. It pained Ash to see her that way; pained him so much that he regretted taking out his anger on her, and telling her a bunch of _stupid lies_.

"D-Dawn…no…" he breathed out, putting his hand on her shoulder. "I didn't mean—"

She frowned, and turned away, slapping his hand of her shoulder. "No, don't say anything else. You've said _enough_."

It was all too much to bear. She ran away as she began to cry. She ran as fast as she could; out of the ballroom and out to the beach, leaving a regretful Ash standing in the middle of the dance floor,

bowing his head in **shame**.

* * *

**Kathy: Well, I'm done.**

**Dawn: *crying* This chapter was so sad.**

**Gary: And so stupid.**

**Misty: *smacks him on the head* Don't say that in front of her! You're just gonna make her cry some more!**

**Ash: Well, please review this [horrible] chapter!**

**Kathy: *glares at him* It was **_**horrible**_**?! I did all of this work for nothing?!**

**Ash: *sweatdrops* N-No! It was great! *gives a thumbs up***

**Kathy: *smiles* Now that's more like it. Please review, as he said before! I eat reviews for a living!**

**Brock: No, Ash does!**


	8. You're Not Sorry

**Kathy: Heyy (: Sorry for the late update, I blame school and its stupid projects and exams :P**

**Gary: Well, lucky for me, I don't need to do any crap like that, haha.**

**Misty: *whacks him on the head* Why do you have to be such a show-off?**

**Gary: OW! …But you know you like it. *winks at her***

**Misty: *blushes* Well…**

**Dawn: *laughs* Looks like he caught you there, Misty!**

**Ash: *just stares dreamily at Dawn, admiring how pretty she looks when she laughs***

Disclaimer: I don't own the song. And, I do not own Pokemon (…I really wish I did though)

**Ash: *still staring at Dawn dreamily***

**Dawn: …That's weird, you didn't bother asking Kathy why she wants to own us.**

**Ash: …What? *realizes he's been staring at her the whole time* O-Oh! Haha, yeah…well…it's because—**

**Misty: —It's because he's been staring at YOU the whole time!**

**Ash: *blushes* Well, who wouldn't wanna stare at Dawn? She's so pretty… *stares at her again***

**Dawn: *just blushes***

**Kathy: Hey…what about me?**

**Brock: *stares at her* I'm staring at you.**

**Kathy: *cringes* Get away from me.**

**

* * *

**

"I thought we were supposed to stick to the plan," Gary smirked, questioning the beautiful redhead standing beside him.

Gary and Misty were standing off to the side of the enormous ballroom where the Sunyshore City Beach Ball was taking place, both of them casually leaning against the railing that traced around the circular dance floor. Sounds of chatter, laughter, and music echoed throughout the room. The main lights were dimmed, creating a more _romantic _and _sentimental _atmosphere.

Misty shrugged, her hands subconsciously playing around with the ends of her dress. "Well, I really don't think we need to stick to it anymore," she replied, staring off into the dance floor. There, she could see two familiar faces smiling, laughing, and enjoying their time together. One with long midnight blue hair and sapphire blue eyes, and one with" messy raven-black hair and a black fedora hat placed over his head. _'If only…' _Misty thought to herself.

Gary turned his head to look at her. "Why not?" he asked. "I actually thought it was a good one." He flashed a smile, hoping to lift her mood up.

The redhead sighed. "I guess…it's just because there's no sense in trying to find out who Ash really loves now. It's obvious that he loves Dawn, just look at the two of them now!" she told him, motioning to the two on the dance floor. "…And besides, he already admitted to me that he loves her, and I didn't even have to do anything." She said that last part barely over a whisper.

His eyebrows furrowed, and a serious expression took over Gary's face as he began to speak again. "Then, why do you seem so frustrated with all of this?"

Misty bowed her head. "I…I don't know."

"I thought you knew this was coming," Gary breathed out. "You even told me that you expected him to love Dawn when we were talking on the phone a few days ago."

Misty sighed. _'He was right, as usual. He's always right.'_

"It's just…" she began, trying to figure out a way to say her thoughts right, "…that I wish…someone could _love _me…like Ash loves Dawn, you know? You can see how strong his feelings are for that girl, and the way he expresses them towards her…and even by just leaving some little, subtle hints…it's just so…so magical and sweet. That even by the simplest of actions, you could see how much he cares about her. I…I just wish that someone— someone so sweet and caring, someone who'd do anything for me— would love me like Ash loves Dawn."

Realizing what she'd said, she let out a small laugh, chuckling at herself. "I sound so stupid, don't I?" she muttered, only so that she and Gary could hear. She smiled to herself, thinking that what she just explained to him was nothing more than a complicated daydream.

'_Like anything like that will ever happen to me, I don't deserve it.' _

She turned her head to look at the auburn-haired boy beside her, wondering what he thought of this nonsense she was blabbering about— and wondered why she even cared about _his _opinion. But once she faced him, she became…confused.

All Gary was doing…was _smiling at her_.

"…Gary?" she breathed out, a perplexed tone in her voice.

He chuckled at her confused-state, realizing how cute she looked when she was. "What if someone _did _love you like that, Misty?" he asked her, grinning a cocky smile. "You never know."

The redhead raised an eyebrow, even more confusion entering her. "What do you mean?"

Gary chuckled again, and then took her hand into his, looking into her sea green eyes with his warm dark eyes. "Come on, let's dance," he beamed.

Misty, too flustered by what was happening at the moment, didn't even bother to ask him why he changed the topic so suddenly and just blushed as he walked her over to the circular tiled dance floor. "O-Okay," she managed to murmur.

The dance floor was full of couples slow-dancing with each other. A slow, heartfelt love ballad was playing for them to sway to, and created a romantic mood throughout the ballroom. Gary walked Misty around the dance floor, until they were at the perfect spot for them. Then, he placed one hand on her waist, and his other intertwined with hers. He smirked when he saw her blush as he swayed them both to the rhythm of the song.

Misty, now realizing that all that was happening was actually real, smiled and placed her one free hand on Gary's shoulder, and she began to sway together with him as well.

'_Here I am, dancing with Gary Oak,' _Misty thought to herself, a wondrous mood spread throughout her. _'Hm, who'd ever thought I'd be dancing with him a few days ago?' _She grinned at the irony she'd discovered.

"Gary," she breathed out.

Once she called his name, he placed his full attention on her, and a warm smile was placed on his face. "Yeah?"

"Out of all the pretty girls in the ballroom tonight…why'd you go and pick me – an ugly, annoying girl you've seen for most of your life – to dance with?" she questioned, her emerald eyes gleaming.

The auburn-haired boy chuckled. "Okay, first of all; you're not ugly, or annoying…well, _most of the time_," he said, Misty rolled her eyes and giggled, "and, you looked like you needed someone."

Misty smiled. "So, you're dancing with me…just to be _nice_?"

Gary shrugged. "I guess you could say it like that."

The redhead laughed. "I can't believe it. You're actually doing something nice!"

"Hey, I do nice things all the time!" he protested. "I help all the Pokemon Professors, my grandpa, Pokemon, other people—"

Misty smiled, and interrupted him. "But…you're doing something nice," she started, and then looked up into his eyes, "…for _me._"

Gary blushed. "Er…well…"

Suddenly, the moment between the two was interrupted by an abrupt stream of yelling, coming from just a few meters away from them. The yelling could be heard throughout the dance floor, and maybe even past it as well. And the source of the yells…sounded all too familiar to Misty and Gary.

"But guess what; I'm _not_. Why would I be jealous of Gary spending so much time with you? I don't love you; I don't, I don't! I'm tired of everyone trying to force it out of my mouth! I'm tired of them trying to pair me up with you, I'm tired of everything! Why is it such a big deal?" The yells carried throughout the dance floor, gaining the attention of every couple on the floor.

"That…that sounds like Ash," Misty breathed, her eyes widening. Her face began to pale, as she began to realize who Ash was yelling at, and what was about to happen.

Gary read her and what she was feeling, and quickly grabbed her hand. "Come on, we better go check out what's going on," he told her, and then they both ran towards the conflict and commotion.

Pushing through couples and ignoring the annoyed groans and stares, Misty and Gary finally got out of the crowd, and got a front row seat of what was about to be one of the most heartbreaking situations that week. Once Misty and Gary saw the angry frustrated Ash, and the fragile weak Dawn…they became paralyzed, and feared what would happen next.

The once sweet and caring raven-haired Pokemon trainer was steaming with anger, and he was glaring at the blunette before him. He continued to shout at her some more. "Being in love with a girl like you, there's _nothing_ special about it! There's _nothing_ special about _you!_"

"What's happened to Ash? How could he say that to Dawn?" Misty whispered. "He's never been like that before." She began trembling and quivering.

Gary squeezed her hand in his to calm her down, but he knew it wouldn't work anyway. "I-I don't know," he replied back. "But whatever's gonna happen…I can tell that it's not gonna be good." Gary and Misty and the rest of the crowd witnessing the conflict continued to watch the argument between the two teens some more, wanting to know what would happen next.

Gary and Misty looked at Ash, steaming with frustration and anger. What happened to the sweet and caring Ash they all once knew? Then, they turned their attention to the girl Ash was shouting at. Dawn looked so shocked, and so hurt. It looked like every word that came out of Ash's mouth pained her even more, breaking her heart inch by inch. Her eyes were watering, and her soft pink lips were placed into a grimace. _'She's brave, for still standing there and taking in every hurtful thing he's saying to her,'_ Misty thought to herself.

Dawn looked at Ash, wondering why he was telling her off. She was so confused, so shocked, and so weakened. "B-But I thought—"

Ash glared at her once more, and cut her off. "But you thought _what_? You thought that I actually loved _you_?" he snapped back at her. "Well, I can't and I don't! You shouldn't love me either, you _shouldn't_…"

Once the raven-haired trainer said that, the crowd witnessing the fight filled with murmurs. Every individual who was watching started feeling sympathetic towards the crushed blunette, for she looked so devastated.

Dawn looked so heartbroken; tears were streaming down her face, the gleam that was usually in her blue orbs was replaced with devastation, her lips were quivering, and her breath was quickened. She looked so hurt, so fragile, so weak. And her current condition was affecting others around her as well.

Misty was so saddened by the moment that her sea green eyes began to tear up. "Oh my God…" she breathed out, a single tear streaming down from her eye.

Gary turned to the redhead beside him, and a serious expression came upon his face. "Misty…are you _crying_?" he asked, gently wiping away her tear with his finger.

She sniffled, and simply nodded in reply. "How could I not?" she whispered out. Misty couldn't help but let her sensitive side take over her, what with all the sadness and depression in the air. She wrapped her arms around Gary's arm, clinging to it like a scared little girl would. Gary just let her, and they continued to watch Ash and Dawn. So did the other individuals in the crowd.

Once Ash saw the heartbroken, devastated look on Dawn's face, he stopped. A pained expression entered his face once he saw her. He slowly approached her, and placed his hand on her shoulder. ""D-Dawn…no…" he began, "I didn't mean—"

Dawn frowned, and turned away, slapping his hand of her shoulder. Tears were madly streaming down her face. "No, don't say anything else. You've said _enough_." Anyone who looked at her could see that she couldn't bear anymore of this, anymore of Ash, and anymore of the yelling.

And then suddenly, she just took off. She ran out of the ballroom as fast as she could, her tears trailing behind her as she did. The people who were crowded around made way for her, sympathy for the blunette taking over them. Then, they glared at the raven-haired Pokemon trainer – who was bowing his head, feeling regretful and ashamed – and walked away.

"Ash," Gary called out to him.

Ash looked up, and hesitantly walked over to his two best friends. "What did I just do?" he muttered, slapping his forehead. His eyes watered, he was on the verge of tears.

Brock and his date, Autumn, walked over to the three teens, solemn looks on their faces. "The biggest mistake of your life," Brock said, as if reading Ash's mind.

"How could you do that, Ash?" Misty yelled at him, tears falling from her eyes. "You said you love her…you said so yourself! And what do you do to her? Yell at her, take your anger out on her, and make her run away!"

Gary looked at her. "Misty, stop," he told her, placing a hand on her shoulder. He couldn't believe she was acting so emotional right now. She usually kept herself controlled and held together these days…well, most of the time she did.

Ash shook his head. "No, it's okay," he breathed out, then sighed. "She's right."

They all just stood in an awkward silence, the recent happenings flashing through their minds. Everything was processing, it took time for each of them – Ash, Gary, Misty, Brock, and Autumn – to comprehend what had just happened. And it was especially hard for Ash.

He couldn't believe he'd told Dawn off.

And she'd done absolutely _nothing _to him.

Ash mentally slapped himself. "Why the heck did I have to act so stupid?" he yelled at himself, his voice cracking up, a few tears streaming down his cheeks. _'It's all my fault…it's my fault that she's been so unhappy for the past week…'_ he thought, bowing his head. Although he didn't know the exact reason why, he knew that it was his fault that Dawn had been acting so…different the whole week. He just _knew it_.

Misty, Gary, Brock, and Autumn all watched him with sympathy in their eyes.

"Why did you?" Gary questioned him, concerned for his childhood friend. "I mean, you love her. You know you do, everyone knows. And the way you decide to act towards her is by _hurting her_? Why?"

Ash shook his head, wiping away his tears. He couldn't believe he was crying, it's been a while since he let himself cry. He was acting like his old, sensitive ten-year-old self. _'I guess Dawn just has that power over me…to make me cry over her. She's different from any other girl I've met.' _"I…I don't know," he replied to Gary, staring off into space. "I guess I was just so, so overwhelmed by you and Brock and Misty…trying to find out who I loved and liked…when I wasn't even so sure about it myself."

"What do you mean?" Autumn asked in a hushed tone, her arm wrapped around Brock's.

Ash looked at the couple lovingly; he wished he and Dawn could be like that. "Well…I just got so angry, at the fact that everyone was trying to force out my feelings for people…to try to find out who I liked," he explained. "I was just so sick and tired of it…and I couldn't stand it anymore. And when Dawn was just joking around, saying that I was jealous of her and Gary spending time together…I couldn't take it anymore. I just let go of all my anger, and took it out on her."

Gary couldn't help but smirk. "Now…that just proves that you do love her," he said. "You know, being jealous of me and her. There wasn't even anything going on between me and her, she's just like the 'little sister I never had'. Same goes for her."

Ash just shook his head, and looked down to the ground. "If only I'd known that sooner," he breathed out.

Brock looked at him with condolence. "Well Ash…you can't change the past. What's already happened has happened, and you can't do anything about it."

Ash sighed. "I know."

"So, how do you plan to fix this?" Brock questioned him.

Ash shrugged.

"What if you get her some ice cream to cheer her up as well?" Autumn suggested, her hazel eyes gleaming. "You know, like you did at me and my sisters' Maid Café when she was having that small depression?"

The raven-haired trainer stayed still, and stayed silent, ideas flashing through his mind.

In a few minutes, he came up with a solution. "…I guess I could go find her and say sorry," he breathed out, "and maybe I could get some ice cream for her too." He said, winking at Autumn. The redhead smiled in appreciation.

Gary smiled. "Then what are you waiting for?" he said. "Go find her."

Ash flashed a smile, but it disappeared as fast as it came. He nodded, and then started to head out of the ballroom.

Misty, wiping away her tears, stopped him first, by placing a hand on Ash's shoulder. "Ash, wait," she called out. He turned his head, and placed his full attention on her. "Please don't hurt her again, watch what you say to her. I don't want you guys to argue again, I don't like it when you do; I mean, just look at me now!" She said, talking about how emotional she'd gotten.

"So please, be gentle with her. Don't drive her away," Misty continued. "'Cause I know how much you love her."

Ash gave her a willing, determined look. "Okay, I'll try."

And then he set off to go find the girl he loved. **(A/N: This was all so corny xD)**

**

* * *

**

_So I drive home alone  
As I turn out the light  
I'll put his picture down  
And maybe get some sleep tonight_

"How could he do this to me?" she whispered, tears trailing down her cheeks.

The blunette sat at the edge of a wooden pier that stretched out from the luminous buildings of the Sunyshore Beach Resort and all the way to the beach. The pier ended just right after the shallow part of the ocean, where waves roared and collided. Dawn had her legs dangling from the edge of the wooden path, her bare feet dipped into the restless blue waters of the beach— she'd taken off her heels after running all the way there, her feet had ached and felt extremely sore.

Dawn was crying. Her head was buried into her hands, and her elbows rested on her lap. She knew she looked like a mess, after speeding out of the ballroom…but she didn't care. The boy who she'd loved so much, so passionately, and with so much emotion had _rejected _her, and yelled at her, saying how he _didn't _like her in return. So what was there to care about anymore?

"Ash…" she breathed out, a sob coming out after she did.

'_Cause he's the reason for the teardrops on my guitar  
The only one who's got enough of me to break my heart  
He's the song in the car I keep singing  
Don't know why I do_

She thought she'd gotten all the pieces together. That raven-haired boy blushed almost every time he was around her. He supported her during her contests and stuff, and she did in return. He'd taught her everything he could to help her and shape her into a better trainer. He'd given her so much, from ice cream and treats to special gifts just for her. He only shared high-fives with _her_, and no one else.

They had such a special, strong bond with each other that was unique from his relationship with his other friends…it wasn't like anything else. And just being around him…made her feel so special, and so thankful and happy, like she was blessed to have him in her life.

And then, after all they've been through…he just decided to _throw it all away_. One by one, he threw every inch of her away from him…by yelling at her, breaking her heart into pieces, and paining her even more and more. Why did he do it?

The blunette sniffled, and tucked a strand of her midnight blue hair behind her ear. "Well…maybe I just don't deserve to be with him," she murmured. "He's perfect, in every way. And besides…he likes Misty." She frowned when she spoke the truth, or so she thought.

How could he not like Misty? Everyone did, and even Dawn did so herself. She was beautiful, more beautiful than Dawn would ever be. And she was a talented Pokemon trainer, a great person to be around, and a girl with an amazing personality. _'After all that's happened today, he'd probably want her to travel with him instead of __**me**__,' _she thought, more tears streaming down her face. _'I know it. He's gonna replace me with __**her**__.'_

"But what did I do to deserve this?" she cried out.

Feeling more sobs wanting to come out, Dawn started crying her heart out again. She couldn't help it. After all her effort to help Ash, to show him what she felt, to support him throughout everything…it was all thrown out by _him_. She'd given him so much, and he threw it all away. Why?

"Dawn," she heard a voice call out. _His _voice.

The blunette slowly lifted her head up from her hands, still sniffling as she did. She then fixed her midnight blue hair and straightened herself up, just so that she didn't look like a _complete _mess. She didn't turn around to look at him, she remained in the same place she was.

"What?" she said, a morbid tone in her voice.

Ash nervously scratched the back of his head. "…Look, I didn't mean what I said to you back at the dance."

Dawn sniffled. "Really?" she said sarcastically. "It seemed to me that you meant _everything _you said back there." Tears began falling from her eyes again as she started to remember what had happened between them a few moments ago.

Ash was pained when he heard the tone in her voice. She still sounded so hurt and upset from their little argument. "But I didn't mean it, Dawn…" he soothed as he slowly made his way toward her. "I didn't."

"Sure you didn't…you just said all those hurtful words to me for nothing," she sarcastically went on again, not believing a single word he told her. "You just wanted to see me run and cry, that's all."

The raven-haired trainer shook his head. "Really Dawn, I'm telling the truth."

Dawn hesitated, and then sighed. "…I don't know if I should believe you anymore, I don't know what to think," she whispered out. She hugged her knees tightly, and shut her teary eyes. "…I don't know if I can trust you anymore."

Ash grimaced. "Aw come on, Dawn!" he protested.

"I just…don't know," she murmured, a tear streaming down her cheek.

Ash's eyes began to water as well; she was breaking down…all because of _him. _All because he couldn't tell the beautiful, sweet, innocent truth to her face. All because he was too _scared _to. "Dawn…you're my best friend. And I don't want you to go away, you don't know how much you mean…to everyone who you've been with, to everyone you've met, to every single friend you have…and to _me_," he explained.

"You're…so different from anyone else I've met, and you've made such a difference in my life," he admitted. "…And every hurtful, painful word that I said to you back in the ball, I really…absolutely _didn't _mean it. I didn't mean to hurt you…I'm so sorry that I did. Those were just a bunch of _stupid lies_, and I was stupid to lie to you."

The blunette stayed silent.

'_I hope I said the right thing,' _Ash thought, hoping everything would turn out right.

Dawn…

Dawn…

…was angered.

He said he didn't love her and that there was absolutely nothing special about her! He screamed at her, humiliated her in front of so many people…and now he's saying that all of that crap was _a lie_? Was he serious? Why couldn't he make up his mind? Why did he have to be so confusing? _Why?_

"Oh yeah?" she started, raising her voice. "Well, tell that to my face!" She immediately stood up, and faced him, frustration taking over her.

Ash froze, the sweet blunette he once knew was now so…so angry, and not so innocent and nice at the moment. _'…Did I say something wrong?' _he wondered, a sense of dread and disappointment spreading throughout his mind.

"Dawn…" he started, putting both his hands on her shoulders. He wanted to get the sweet blunette _back_.

But then, she swatted his hands off her shoulders as soon as he placed them there. "Don't you _'Dawn'_ me!" she screamed, walking backwards, away from him.

"Just…just GO AWAY! GO AWAY! STOP TALKING TO ME! JUST LEAVE…LEAVE ME—"

All of a sudden, Dawn slipped off the wooden pier and into the restless ocean. She hadn't realized that she'd walked backwards too far, for she was too busy yelling and screaming at the boy she loved.

"DAWN!" Ash screamed in horror as he watched the blunette struggle to swim back to the pier.

Dawn coughed and spat out the bitter saltwater as she tried to swim back. But alas, the current of the ocean was too strong for her to beat, and carried her farther and farther away from the pier and the shore of the beach. "ASH!" she yelled, desperate for help. She felt herself and her body weakening, and slowly drowning.

She felt herself giving up, on _everything_.

Ash screaming her name, and a splash of something diving into the ocean after her…was the last thing she remembered hearing.

* * *

**Kathy: Another horrible, rushed chapter. Yippee. But anyway, sorry it was rushed! I wanted to update as soon as I could! So…there might be some spelling and/or grammar errors.**

**Dawn: Why'd you have to leave it at a cliffhanger? I wanted to know what happened to me!**

**Gary: Oh well, you're gonna have to wait until the next update.**

**Dawn: *tear streams down her face* Aww.**

**Ash: Why do you have to cry so much?**

**Dawn: *glares at him* I'm not crying! Your breath smells like…whatever you were eating, and it's so strong that it made my eyes tear up. Like onions, hehe…**

**Ash: …How did you know I ate onions today?**


	9. What Happened?

**Kathy: *hesitantly and nervously walks in* Uh, hehehehe…hey guys! ...I am SO sorry for not updating in a long time. I really am!**

**Gary: About six months, to be exact.**

**Kathy: *glares at him* SHH! You don't need to remind them!  
Anyway, I am so very sorry. I didn't mean to keep you guys waiting like that for so long! Especially at a cliffhanger. You guys have a right to be angry/annoyed with me. Throw bricks at me if you want (but I'll be standing behind Ash and Gary if you do, haha ;D). But…at least I'm back now. And, at least I didn't put this story aside PERMANENTLY. Mmhm, hahaha (; **

**Ash: Just get on with the story already! I wanna know what happened to Dawn and me! *holding a bag of popcorn in his hands, loudly munching on a handful***

**Kathy: Well, EXCUSE ME for trying to apologize to the readers who have been PATIENTLY waiting, unlike YOU!**

**Ash: Geez…why do you keep getting mad at me like Misty does when she has one of her temper tantrums?**

**Misty: Hey! I heard that!**

**Ash: *ignores her* I just wanna know what happens next!**

**Dawn: Me too!**

**Kathy: *softens up* Okay, fine. I'll go ahead and put the disclaimer up.**

Disclaimer: I don't own the song. And, I don't own Pokémon (I still wish I did.)

**Ash: Uh…why—**

**Gary, Brock, Misty, & Dawn: SHUT UP!**

**Ash: *sweatdrops* Okay!**

**Kathy: *laughs* I guess this is where I start the story. Okay, here we go!**

**

* * *

**

"…I think we should go check on Ash and Dawn."

A redheaded girl wearing a dazzling red flowing dress turned her head to look at the boy beside her, waiting for his response. All he did was sit there, and stare off into space, looking slightly bothered when she questioned him.

The boy made no effort to turn to look at her. Instead, he continued to stare in front of him with a bored daze.

He finally spoke. "I'm sure they're fine, Misty," Gary replied monotonously, as if it were the hundredth time they'd gone through this.

Actually, it _was _the hundredth time.

Misty rolled her eyes. Why wouldn't he just agree with her?

The two teens were sitting on the steps of the small staircase that led to the circular dance-floor of the ballroom. They remained that way ever since Ash left to look for Dawn about an hour ago. Brock and Autumn were somewhere else in the ballroom, continuing to spend time with each other. The tiled dance-floor in front of them was barren and clear of people. Ever since the little "incident" that happened between Ash and Dawn on the dance-floor occurred, everyone who had been there moved off to the sidelines, murmuring and socializing amongst each other. The band and the DJ remained on their stage in the dance-floor, playing songs to fill in the empty air.

More than an hour had gone by, and Misty was getting restless. Neither Ash nor Dawn had returned; she was getting pretty worried. _'It doesn't take that long to make up…'_ she thought to herself.

The worried redhead turned to the auburn-haired boy beside her. "Can't we _please _go check on them, Gary?" she pleaded. "It's been more than an hour, and it's already midnight!"

Gary turned to look at her and was caught off guard once he did. Her sea green eyes were boring into his. Her eyes were so vivid that he could practically see the anxiousness and worry in them…almost as if they were _begging _him to agree with her.

"Please?" she added, making it even harder for Gary to resist.

He paused for a moment, and then quickly shook it off. "I'm pretty sure they're doing fine," he said, almost sounding annoyed. He turned his head away. "They're probably making up right now. You know how they are; they fight, they make up, and then fight again. **(A/N: Gary's been listening to **_**High Touch**_**? Ahahaha. xD)** They're too close to each other to let a silly little fight get in the way of their friendship."

Misty sighed and rested her chin on her hands. "I know, I know," she said, used to his usual corrections. He was always right. _Always_.

She shook her head. _'But not this time.'_

"…But, this is one of the biggest fights that they've ever had!" she protested, her voice growing louder. "This is different…this is serious. What if something wrong happened? What if it got even _worse_?" Emphasis on the "worse".

He was about to argue back, but then hesitated, and processed what she had said into his mind.

After a moment of silence, he finally turned his head to her. "…Okay, fine," he replied. "We'll go check on them."

The instant he said that, her eyes lit up. She flashed a triumphant smile. "Thank you!"

The two got up and began to walk across the dance-floor towards the exit that led them out from the ballroom and into the outside balcony and walkways of the clubhouse.

Suddenly remembering about Brock and Autumn, Misty tapped Gary on the shoulder, and told him, "Oh, and can you call Brock and tell him and Autumn to come down and meet us here?"

Gary gave her an annoyed look. "Why can't you do it yourself?"

"Because _you_ brought your cell phone, and _I_ didn't," she snapped back, making her point. A smirk was plastered on her face as she watched him get even more annoyed at her.

Gary glared at her, his cheeks a flustering red. He hastily grabbed his cell phone out of the pocket of his black dress pants as he began to dial Brock's phone number. "Hmph…such a pesky girl **(A/N: Another reference. But this time, to OldRivalShipping. I'm on a roll. ;D)**," he muttered under his breath, low enough so she couldn't hear.

He still wasn't used to the way she treated him, and it's been years since they've met each other. While every other girl he'd ever met treated him either with a flirtatious or kind manner, she'd act the exact opposite; by taunting and messing around with him.

'_Well, I guess that just makes her __**different**__,' _he thought as he gave one more look at her, and then pressed the dial button on his phone to call Brock, and put the phone to his ear.

After a few rings, the phone finally picked up. _"Hello?" _

A half-smile crept up Gary's face once he heard the giddy tone in Brock's voice. He and Autumn must be having a good time with each other. "Hey Brock," he casually answered back. "It's Gary. Misty and I are heading out of the ballroom to go check on Ash and Dawn. Do you guys wanna go with us?"

A few seconds of indistinct murmurs could be heard from Gary's phone. Brock was informing Autumn about Gary's request, probably asking her if she was okay with doing it.

Then finally, with a happy tone, Brock replied, _"Sure, we'll be glad to."_

Gary flashed a smile. "Okay, meet us down at the exit across the dance-floor."

The two said their good-byes and hung up on each other.

In a couple of minutes, Brock and Autumn met up with Misty and Gary. They briefly greeted each other once again, and then headed out of the ballroom, starting their search for Ash and Dawn.

They split up; Gary and Misty headed out to the beach to search for Ash and Dawn, while Brock and Autumn searched all over the clubhouse for them as well. Unfortunately, neither of the couples could find Ash and Dawn in the beach or the clubhouse. And they searched _everywhere_.

"I wonder where they are…" Misty breathed out as she and Gary continued to walk down a pathway that stretched on forever starting from the clubhouse, and aligned itself beside the sandy shores of the beach. Slight exhaustion could be heard in her voice, for it had been a half hour since they started searching.

The moon was a full circle, providing a natural light for the two teens, along with a few street lamps here and there at the side of the pathway. More twinkling stars started appearing on the dim night sky, signaling how late the time was becoming.

"They're probably at the villa, since we couldn't find them here and also because Brock and Autumn had no luck of finding them in the clubhouse," he said, stating the obvious and eyeing her as if she were the dumbest person in the world.

"Oh, haha," she breathed out, smiling sheepishly with embarrassment, "I knew that."

A half-smile crept up Gary's face, and then he chuckled. "Sure you did."

Misty stuck her tongue out at him, her face flushing. Thank goodness the night was dark enough to hide her blushing face. She was embarrassed enough. "Just…just call Brock and tell him to head over to the villa!" she snapped at him, directing the conversation's topic away from how stupid she just acted at that moment.

Gary merely chuckled once more before taking out his phone and calling Brock. He notified the Pokémon breeder about heading back to the villa and then hung up. And right after he finished talking with Brock, he and Misty walked back to the villa, expecting to find Ash and Dawn there.

Silence filled the first few minutes it took them to walk there.

Then finally, Misty decided to talk.

"Do you think they actually made-up?" she wondered out loud.

Gary sighed. Why does she keep talking? "I'm not sure, Misty," he answered, an impatient and restless tone in his voice. "We'll just have to wait and see."

He then turned to look at her, and asked, "…Why do you keep worrying?"

Misty shrugged. "I…I really don't know," she answered. "I guess…it's just, that I feel like it's _my fault _that Ash and Dawn are in this mess. I bet if I never came to visit, everything would be just fine between them."

She frowned, looking down to the ground as they continued to walk. "They would be so happy without me here. Especially Dawn," she breathed out, feeling guilty. "If I never came, Dawn wouldn't have been depressed for the past week."

Suddenly, she felt a grip on her shoulder, stopping her in her tracks. She looked up and saw Gary's hand on her shoulder, and his dark eyes locking with her sea green ones.

"Don't say that, Misty," he denied, fighting back. "That's not true."

Misty shook her head. "Yes it is," she replied, her voice breaking.

Gary grimaced. "Misty, you don't know—"

"Just put it aside, Gary!" she yelled, stopping him from reasoning with her. She turned away, unable to look at him all of a sudden. She _knew _it was her fault, she just knew it. And she didn't need anyone, especially _Gary_, to change her mind about it.

She just wanted to disappear. Or go back in time. Anything to keep Dawn's depression and Ash and Dawn's little argument from happening, she'd do it.

But it was _impossible_ to change the past.

Misty sighed, and just continued to walk, along with Gary following her at her side. She looked ahead, spotting the villa, which was probably just a few minutes away from where they were at the moment. She took a deep breath, hoping Ash and Dawn were doing alright.

Gary, on the other hand, couldn't help but look at the redhead next to him without feeling concerned for her.

'_She's been acting so distressed ever since the fight,' _he thought to himself, and frowned. He didn't like seeing her so down and upset, especially when it wasn't even her fault! In fact, it was _no one's_ fault that this conflict happened. It just sort of…happened, by itself.

Gary then looked to the ground, worry filling his eyes. _'…We really need to fix this problem. Not just for Dawn and Ash's sake, but for Misty, and the rest of us!'_

After a couple minutes of silence, they finally reached the backdoor of Ash, Dawn, Brock, and Misty's villa. Misty opened the door with her room card key, and motioned for Gary to go inside first, but being the gentleman he usually isn't, he let Misty go inside first.

They walked into the villa and through the hallway, their hearts beginning to pulse due to the suspense of the situation. Questions of worry began to stream through their minds; Did Dawn and Ash make up already? Or were things still going bad?

"Let's check the living room," Misty breathed out, almost as if she were talking to herself.

Gary nodded, agreeing, and the two teens took a left, entering the said room.

And once they walked in,

…shock _immediately _entered them.

Lying on the couch was an unconscious – or sleeping (?) – Dawn. And she was a _mess_; her midnight blue hair was visibly wet, and was sprawled all over the pillow her head rested on. The white knee-length dress she was wearing was also soaking wet, ruined and wrinkled by what seemed like water. Grains of white sand could be seen on various parts of her body; her calves, her arms, her hair, etc. She looked like she'd been rolling around the beach's shore.

A morbid Ash sat on a cushioned chair beside the couch, looking at the blunette with worried brown eyes.

The Pokémon trainer was equally messy as Dawn was. The black tuxedo he wore was mildly drenched of water. His white gloves and black fedora hat (which were soaked as well) were taken off, and he held them in his hands. His hair was wet as well, a little flat but still wild as ever.

Now, the question that instantly popped on Misty and Gary's heads at the sight of this was;

_What the heck happened?_

"Ash…" Misty started, who was gradually becoming appalled as her mind came up with the worst situations that could've happened between Ash and Dawn, "…what did you do?" A horrified expression came upon her face as she glanced at the lifeless-looking Dawn.

The redhead quickly rushed over to the couch, eyeing and observing the blue-haired girl. "What happened to her?" she questioned. "Is she even alive?" She frowned, and her mouth began to tremble.

She then turned to Ash, her sea green eyes filling with anger. "Oh! You've done it this time, Ash Ketchum!" She clenched her fists, and was about to slap Ash like she used to whenever she got angry at him when they were ten-years-old. This was the first time she hit – or was going to hit him – in a long time.

Ash sighed and began to prepare for impact, turning his head as if he were already giving up, offering his cheek for Misty to slap.

Gary grimaced at the sight of this, and ran over to Misty, holding her hand back before she could hit Ash. "Misty, wait!" he yelled, stopping her.

The fiery redhead turned to him, frustrated. "What?" she snapped at him.

Gary gave her a serious look. "We don't know what happened yet. There's no need to jump to conclusions and start a fight. Let him tell us what happened," he reasoned with her. "Besides, isn't that what we came here for?" He locked his eyes with hers.

The raged expression on her face slowly softened up. "Oh…alright, fine," she softly said, and a small blush crept up her face as a result from embarrassment. She turned to Ash, and told him, "I'm sorry, Ash."

Ash gave her a weak smile, and said, "It's no problem."

She sat down on a cushioned chair next to him, while Gary grabbed a wooden stool from the kitchen. He placed it beside Misty's seat, and simply sat on it.

Misty then cleared her throat. "…Well, as I was saying before, _is _she alive?" she asked him, as the three teens looked upon their blue-haired friend.

Ash nodded in reply. "Yeah, she's just sleeping."

Both Misty and Gary let out a relieved sigh once they heard this. How could someone _not_ be worried about Dawn if they saw her like that without an explanation?

"So, does that mean you fixed the problem between you two?" Gary asked him.

Ash nervously scratched the back of his head. "Well…not exactly."

Gary raised an eyebrow. "Then what happened?"

"And why are you two covered in sand and drenched with water?" Misty added, a confused look on her face. She and Gary turned their heads to look at Ash, staring at him with anxious looks. "Tell us what happened," they said in unison.

Suddenly, Brock and Autumn walked into the room. Just as Gary and Misty did when they first entered the room, Brock and Autumn looked at the sight of the unconscious messy Dawn and the soaked Ash with shock and bewilderment.

Before Brock or Autumn could even say a word, Misty spoke up. "Go ahead and sit down," she told them. "Ash is about to tell us what happened."

The couple nodded, and sat on a smaller couch that was adjacent to the couch Dawn was lying on.

"Go on," Brock said, signifying that he was ready to hear the story. Autumn nodded and gave a small smile to Ash, telling him that she was ready to hear it as well.

Ash flashed a smile at the couple, and then turned back to Misty and Gary to see what they had to say. Both of them had solemn looks on their faces. "You heard him, Ash," Misty said, nodding her head, "Go ahead."

He nodded back, and took a deep breath. "…Okay," he finally said. "Well…here's what happened."

_**Flashback – about 2 hours ago…**_

"_Where is she?" Ash muttered to himself, frantically pacing back and forth in a random hallway._

_For what almost seemed like an hour, the raven-haired trainer had been running around the whole summer resort, looking for Dawn so he could talk to her and explain things. But he failed to find her. And he checked __**everywhere**__._

_So, that left Ash to wonder where else she could be besides the interior of the summer resort._

_He became deep in thought, brainstorming where the blunette could be._

"…_Maybe she's around the beach," he finally proposed, starting to head out the exit of the current building he was in. Once he was out of the building, he began to walk swiftly down a wooden path that led to the summer resort's fishing pier, and the boardwalk that led to the Sunyshore Beach._

_A few minutes of silence occupied his walk. _

_But just minutes later, distant feminine cries and sobs could be heard in the background._

"_I wonder if that's Dawn…" he whispered to himself, following the sounds of the sobs. The more and more he walked, the more distinct the cries and sobs sounded. And the more he got nearer to the source, the more recognizable and familiar they sounded._

_Ash's eyes widened once he realized it. "Now I'm __**sure **__that's Dawn!" He ran, getting closer to the sobs' source, which led him rushing towards the entrance to the summer resort's fishing pier._

_In less than a minute, he found himself slowing down, walking down a long brown wooden pier, which stretched from the beach's shores until the end of the shallow waters of the glistening blue ocean. Waves roaring and crashing into each other could be heard in the background, along with the cries and sobs. Ocean water sloshed around the edges of the wide boardwalk of the pier._

'The tide's pretty strong right now,'_ the trainer thought to himself as he observed his surroundings._

_He then looked ahead of him, his eyes widening once again as he did._

_There, in front of him, was Dawn._

_And she didn't look too good._

_She, in fact, was the source of the crying. And she was still doing so at the moment. The blunette sat at the pier's end, her legs dangling off the edge, her feet barely touching the water. She had her head buried into her hands, muffled cries and sobs coming out of her. _

_But, even though they were muffled, he could hear them loud and clear. And just by hearing her cries, he could hear the hurt; the hurt and the sadness she'd been keeping in herself for too long._

_Ash winced as he heard her cry._

_It pained him so much to see, and hear, her like this._

_She was his best friend, the girl he loved. Seeing her so weak, so broken down…it just made him feel so…guilty, and regretful. It was his fault that she was so depressed. If he hadn't said those hurtful things – or maybe __**lies **__is the appropriate term – then, she probably wouldn't even be crying. She'd still be at the ball…__**they'd **__still be at the ball, enjoying each other's company, and continuing to have a great time._

_But he just __**had**__ to let out all his anger on her._

_Ash mentally slapped himself. _'Why'd you have to be so stupid?' _he asked himself._

_He then sighed, and kept walking closer to Dawn until there was a small distance between them._

_He paused, and took a deep breath. _

_Finally, he spoke up. "Dawn," he called out to her._

_At the sound of his voice, she slowly lifted her head up from her hands, her sobs being replaced by small sniffles. She ran her hands through her midnight blue hair, fixing it up (although, it still looked a bit messy). After that, she remained as she was, not even making any effort to turn around and face him. _

"_What?" she replied, a morbid tone in her voice._

_He slightly winced once again. She still sounded so hurt. And it was his fault. _

_He shook it off, nervously scratching the back of his head. _'This is no time to blame yourself, take this time to explain things to her!' _the little voice in his head repeatedly reminded him._

"…_Look," he started, "I didn't mean what I said back to you at the dance." He tried to say it as sincere as possible._

_She sniffled once again. "Really?" she said, sarcasm in her voice. "It seemed to me that you meant __**everything**__ you said back there."_

_Ash became pained even more once she said that. More guilt began to enter him. "But I didn't mean it, Dawn…" he soothed, slowly nearing her. "I didn't."_

_"Sure you didn't…you just said all those hurtful words to me for nothing," she sarcastically went on again. "You just wanted to see me run and cry, that's all." He frowned; it sounded like she didn't believe a single word he said, like she'd given up all her trust in him._

_But, __**he **__wouldn't give up…no. He __**needed**__ to try. He needed to try to get her back, to __**him**__._

_He shook his head, a determined look on his face. "Really Dawn, I'm telling the truth," he pressed on._

_A few seconds of silence came in, and then she sighed. "…I don't know if I should believe you anymore, I don't know what to think," she admitted, barely over a whisper. From what Ash could see, she brought her knees up to her chest, embracing them. "…I don't know if I can trust you anymore."_

_Now that did it._

"_Aw come on, Dawn!" he protested, a grimace on his face._

"_I just…don't know," she whispered._

_Ash just couldn't take it anymore. His eyes began to water as he realized that it really was his fault that she was like this…that she was __**breaking down**__, all because of him. All because he was too afraid to tell her __**the truth**__; the beautiful, sweet, and innocent truth._

_He tried his best not to let his voice break, let alone cry. "Dawn…you're my best friend," he began, beginning to reveal the truth to her. It was about time he did. If he didn't…he'd __**never**__ get her back to the happy, wonderful girl he knew and loved. And he didn't want that._

_He continued to talk to her. "And I don't want you to go away. You don't know how much you mean…to everyone who you've been with, to everyone you've met, to every single friend you have," he explained, and then paused for a second, "…and to __**me**__."_

_"You're…so different from anyone else I've met, and you've made such a difference in my life," he admitted, a smile flashing upon his face as he said that. "…And every hurtful, painful word that I said to you back in the ball, I really…absolutely __**didn't**__ mean it. I didn't mean to hurt you…I'm so sorry that I did. Those were just a bunch of __**stupid lies**__, and I was stupid to lie to you." And that ended his ended his explanation speech._

_Dawn remained silent._

_Ash held his breath, as he waited for her to speak. _'I hope I said the right thing,' _he thought, hoping everything would turn out right. He hoped and hoped as much as he could, that she would accept his apology and forgive him, and run into his arms…embracing him into a warm hug; and then everything would turn out okay._

…_But it just wasn't that easy._

"_Oh yeah?" Dawn snapped, raising her voice. "Well, tell that to my face!" She yelled, immediately standing up. As soon as she was on her feet, she whipped around to face him, glaring him down with a frustrated, raged look. She looked even angrier than she was whenever she had a monster of a bed-head._

_Ash froze and was speechless once she saw the absolute anger on her face. It even sort of…sort of __**scared **__him. _'…Did I say something wrong?'_ he wondered, a sense of dread and disappointment spreading throughout his mind._

_Finally coming back to his senses, he walked towards her and tried to calm her down. "Dawn…" he started, putting both of his hands on her shoulders. He wanted— no, he __**needed **__to get the sweet blunette back._

_But suddenly, she swatted his hands off her shoulders as soon as he placed them there. "Don't you __**'Dawn'**__ me!" she screamed, walking backwards, away from him._

_He followed slowly, reaching out to her, desperate to get her back. But to no avail, she kept moving away from him, holding her hands out in protest as she continued to yell at him, her anger getting the best of her._

"_Just…just GO AWAY! GO AWAY!" she screamed. "STOP TALKING TO ME! JUST LEAVE…LEAVE ME—"_

_All of a sudden, Dawn slipped off the wooden pier and into the restless ocean. She hadn't realized that she'd walked backwards too far, for she was too busy yelling and screaming at the boy she loved._

_Ash immediately paled, and rushed to the edge of the pier. "DAWN!" Ash screamed in horror as he watched the blunette struggle to swim back to the pier._

_He looked after her, seeing her cough and spit out the bitter saltwater as she tried to swim back. But alas, the current of the ocean was too strong for her to beat, and carried her farther and farther away from the pier and the shore of the beach. Farther away from __**him**__._

_"ASH!" she yelled after him, desperate for help._

_Ash began to panic. "DAWN!" he screamed after her. "Don't…DON'T WORRY! I'M COMING! I'M GONNA SAVE YOU! THERE'S NO NEED TO WORRY!" He then reached for his belt, attempting to grab Buizel's pokeball. _

_But…there was no pokeball. _

_Ash froze. Frantically, he felt around his belt and his pockets for his pokeballs, until he remembered that he had left all of them back at the villa, since the Pokémon stayed home for the ball. "Ugh!" he growled, slapping his forehead. _

"_Ah, I guess I just have to do this myself!" he said as he stood at the edge of the pier, looking out to the ocean. He could no longer see the blunette; she was probably underwater, __**drowning**__._

_Once he realized this, he twisted his black fedora hat backwards. _

_It was time to get __**serious**__._

_He took a deep breath, preparing himself. Then, he dived into the restless waters of the ocean, fighting his way through the ocean's current as he swam. He swam forward, searching around for Dawn._

_After a few minutes of swimming around, he found no sign of her. He swam up to the surface, gasping for air. "Where are you, Dawn?" he screamed, almost giving up. But, he just couldn't let the love of his life die! He couldn't give up. He couldn't._

_Immediately, he dove right back into the water, racing around through the water._

_And, as if fate was on his side,_

…_there…below him, he found Dawn. _

_She was unconscious, and was gradually sinking deeper and deeper to the ocean floor._

"_Dawn!" he screamed, water bubbling out of his mouth. _

_Almost as swift as a Buizel, he darted after her, swimming as fast and as strong as he could. As if his life depended on it. Well actually, it __**did **__depend on it. And so did Dawn's._

_Finally, he reached her, and grabbed her hand once he did. He dragged her along as he swam back to the ocean's surface; but it wasn't so simple. She was almost the same weight as him, but just a little lighter. And trying to lift up yourself, and someone almost as heavy as you, out of the deep clutches of the ocean and back to the water's surface which seemed like hundreds of feet above you, wasn't that easy._

_But even so, he tried his best to get himself and her out of there, and back to dry land. It was one of the most rigorous situations he had ever been in, and it was especially rigorous to his body._

_His body ached and ached even more as he continued to swim and drag Dawn along. He felt his body slowly beginning to __**fail**__ him. He was starting to run out of air, and his body just couldn't bear anymore of the severity of fighting his way through the ocean's current and carrying twice his own weight. He and Dawn began to sink towards the bottom of the ocean_

_And just like Dawn, he felt himself beginning to slip out of consciousness._

_He just wanted to quit. _

_He just couldn't do it anymore._

…_But, _

…_did he really want it to end like this? _

_Did he really want to die as the boy who failed to save the girl he loved; the boy who failed to tell his love the truth; the boy who failed to tell his love those three simple, yet powerful words; the boy who failed to tell the girl he loved that he __**loved **__her?_

_Did he really want that?_

'…No.'

_In just a second, his brown eyes opened, and consciousness returned to him._

_Determination entered him._

_With all his might and with all his strength, he began to swim once again, and dragged Dawn and himself up to the surface. His body began to ache again, but he put it aside. He didn't even bother to think about how pained his body was, for the only thing on his mind was getting Dawn out of this situation __**alive**__._

_And within a few minutes, they made it up to the surface. _

_Ash popped his head out, gasping heavily for air, and lifted Dawn partly out of the water so her head was out as well. _

_He began to swim back to the beach's shore, which he could spot just to be about more than ten meters away, dragging an unconscious Dawn along with him. As he did, he couldn't help but smile in triumph. He'd just saved Dawn and himself from dying. Who wouldn't smile after doing such an amazing feat?_

_When he finally reached the shallow waters of the ocean, where he was finally able to stand on his feet in the water, he began to carry Dawn bridal-style. She still remained unconscious and lifeless-looking, as he walked back towards the sandy shore of the beach. He gently placed her down on the sand (it was the only place he was able to lay her on for now) once they reached land._

_Kneeling down beside her, he lightly shook her, trying to wake her. "Dawn…" he began, "Dawn!" _

_It took him awhile to do this, but in just a minute…she finally woke up._

_Her hands, along with her arms, gradually began moving around, as if they were searching for something. They stopped on Ash, softly embracing his hands. Ash blushed once she did this. Slowly, her eyes fluttered open, like a baby does once it wakes up from a peaceful nap._

_You couldn't describe how filled with joy Ash had become once he saw those beautiful sapphire blue orbs. He grinned, a genuine smile on his face. _

"_Dawn," he breathed out, lovingly staring into her eyes._

_A warm smile came upon the blunette's face once she saw Ash. "Ash," she greeted back, happiness in her voice…though extreme fatigue could be heard as well. _

_She closed her eyes, and began to drift off once again._

_A confused, and almost panicked expression creeped up Ash's face once she did. "…Dawn?" he said, becoming worried. Was she becoming unconscious again? Was she slipping into a coma? Was she going to die?_

_But, once he saw her breathing, he smiled, realizing that she was just sleeping. She must've been __**exhausted**__ after all that's happened in the past hours. And he himself was too._

_So, he carried her bridal-style once again, and carried her back to the villa._

_**End of Flashback**_

Misty, Gary, Brock, and Autumn were still sitting in their same positions in the living room of the villa, their full attention on Ash, who was continuing to recall what had happened.

But, instead of the grave expressions they had on their faces when Ash began the "storytelling"…they all had warm smiles on their faces, and an affectionate atmosphere filled the air. Now that they've found out what had really happened, they couldn't help but do so.

Ash was beginning to put a close to the story. "And when I got here, I laid her down on the couch," the raven-haired boy continued, a small smile on his face as well. "Then, I sat on this chair, and began to wait until she would wake up."

He then paused, and looked at his friends, a sense of conclusion in his dark brown eyes.

"And _that's_ what happened."

* * *

**Kathy: Well, there you go! That was _a lot _to write, I'm not even joking_..._this chapter is more than 7,000 words!**

**_WARNING_ ****(**that I should've put in the **_beginning _**of the chapter xP**)**** - It might be sort of corny, bland, detail-lacked, or rushed in some [or **_**most**_**] parts since I was rushing to get this done.  
And, I'm sorry if it doesn't make sense at times, or if there are any spelling/grammar mistakes as well. x) But, I guess what matters is that I finally got this chapter up…so, yeah. :)**

**Gary: …Who cares?**

**Kathy: *glares at him* The readers!**

**Dawn: Nobody likes a rushed story.**

**Misty: And you, of all people, should know that! *glares at Gary***

**Gary: Why? It's not like I'm some super smart professor or anything.**

**Kathy, Dawn, and Misty: *face-palms***

**Ash: Well, please review! Oh, and mention how awesome and heroic it was for me to save Dawn! *winks***

**Dawn: *glares at him* There's no need to **_**brag**_**!**

**Brock: …Any hot girls out there wanna date me?**

**Croagunk: *poison jabs Brock***

**Kathy: *laughs* Ignore him. **

**Anyway, I promise— well, I'll TRY, to update as soon as I can. It won't take months…I won't let that happen again. The next update will probably come in a few weeks, now that I've gotten over that huge writer's block. (;**

**But for now, as Ash has said;  
please review! Just click the button right under this line, haha! :D**


	10. To Be or Not To Be

**Kathy: *awkwardly walks into the room* Um…hi guys!**

**Ash: SHE'S ALIVE!**

**Brock: It's been forever!**

**Gary: Where the heck have you been?**

**Kathy: *laughs* Uh…it's sort of a long story. But to put it in short terms, the reason why I've been gone for more than a year now is because of school, being a leader of my youth group, life, drama, family, friends, school, more school, and life again. I'm really, really, REALLY SORRY I haven't updated this story for so long! Please don't throw bricks at me! *hides behind the guys***

**Ash: Why would anyone throw bricks at you?**

**Kathy: Because I haven't been updating lately? Duh.**

**Gary: Way to be dense, Ash.**

**Ash: *grins, clueless of the insult* Thanks!**

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, or the song.

**Brock: Any ladies out there who'd like to go out with me?**

**Dawn: Pfft, more like throw bricks at you than go out with you.**

**Brock: What was that?**

**Dawn: N-Nothing! **

**Kathy: *laughs* Oh, it's good to be back. Let the chapter begin!**

* * *

**Chapter Ten: To Be or Not To Be  
**

_Ash was beginning to put a close to the story. "And when I got here, I laid her down on the couch," the raven-haired boy continued, a small smile on his face as well. "Then, I sat on this chair, and began to wait until she would wake up."_

_He then paused, and looked at his friends, a sense of conclusion in his dark brown eyes._

_"And that's what happened."_

The raven-haired trainer looked around at his friends. A small smile came upon his face once he saw the surprised and awe-inspired looks on their faces.

"…Wow. Ashy-boy…" Gary finally started. Ash gave a slight scowl when he said that dreaded nickname. But as soon as it came up, it disappeared, as he eyed his childhood friend, awaiting his next words.

Gary continued to speak. "…What you told us, what you did…it was just so…"

"Amazing," Misty finished for him, her sea green eyes gleaming.

Ash shook his head and shrugged. "It was nothing really," he breathed out. "All I did was—"

"All you did was save Dawn's life, Ash!" Misty exclaimed. She grinned, and looked at him with raised eyebrows. "You call that _nothing_, Ash? She could've died, and you could've died…but, you were strong enough to save the both of you! That's _not _nothing!"

Autumn nodded in agreement. "She's right, Ash," she said. "The story you just told us, it was just…unbelievable. It was amazing, like Misty said. No ordinary person could do something like that." She gave him a reassuring smile to ensure him that what she spoke was true.

Ash flashed a smile back at her, and shifted uneasily in his seat. "Thanks you guys," he told them, an appreciative smile on his face.

But gradually, it faltered, his mouth turning into a thin line. He looked down at the floor, somewhat unsatisfied. Sure, they were right. What he had done for Dawn was a very heroic and amazing feat accomplished. It wasn't something that just anyone could do.

But even so, it just didn't feel like…_enough_. "But…"

"But _what_?" Misty asked, the energy in her winding down.

Ash sighed. "But…just because I saved her life doesn't mean that'll fix everything," he answered. "It doesn't mean that everything's gonna be back to normal. When she wakes up, she'll probably forget what happened back at the beach, and she'll still be angry at me."

"Oh…" Misty breathed out.

The room remained silent.

Finally, Misty stirred, her fists slowly clenching.

She broke the silence. "…This is all my fault."

Everyone else's eyes widened. Ash turned to look at Misty, confusion apparent in his brown eyes. "_Your_ fault? Misty, you didn't even do anything!" he argued. "How could this be your fau—"

"It just is, okay?" she snapped, interrupting him. The abruptness of her response caused him to jerk back in his seat.

She then sighed, feeling bad for yelling at him, and explained herself, "None of this would've ever happened if I didn't come and visit you guys." A wave of realization slowly swept across the room as Misty continued to explain her reasoning. "Dawn wouldn't be all depressed, you wouldn't be so confused, and everything would be just fine if I had never come."

She then looked down to the ground, her head hanging. "I shouldn't have come. I _really_ shouldn't have," she repeated. She kept shaking her head, eventually resting her forehead on her hands.

Ash wanted to comfort her, to tell her that she had nothing to do with his and Dawn's situation. If it was anyone's, it was his, and Dawn's as well; because, the problem was between them two to begin with. Misty had no part in it, other than Ash forcing himself to think he loved her, but that wasn't even Misty's fault.

It really wasn't her fault in Ash's eyes, and that was the most important thing.

But, Ash decided not to confront her about it, because he knew she wouldn't tolerate it at the moment.

On the other hand, _Gary_ was rash and foolish enough to do so. He was so worried about her that it consumed him, disabling him from thinking things through.

"…Misty, it's _not_ your fault," Gary said, his voice in a stern tone. "You didn't do anything."

The redhead slowly raised her head up. The first thing she saw in front of her was Gary, eyeing her with what seemed like worry.

She was too upset to care though.

Her eyes bore into his as she glared at him. "Yes, it is," she argued back, standing up from her seat. She glowered down at him, her anger rising by the second. "It _is_ my fault, because I came. Don't make me explain myself again."

Gary stood up, towering above her, and glared back at her. "Well, I'm not making you explain yourself again because it isn't even _your _fault to begin with!" he snapped at her, the volume of his voice almost equaling out to a yell.

"Um, guys," Ash meekly said, trying to prevent them from fighting.

They ignored him.

"Why are you even yelling at me? I said it's _my _fault, not Ash's!" she hissed.

She raised her hands to push him away and lunged her arms forward, but he caught her wrists before her hands made any contact with his body. She struggled, trying to set her hands free, but his grip was tight.

She kept struggling. "Gary, what the heck are you doing?"

"Guys," Ash said again, his voice a little stronger.

They still ignored him.

Gary just looked at Misty, their faces just inches apart. He could practically feel her hot breath on his face as she panted.

With a strangely calm voice, he said, "I'm not letting go. I'll _never_ let go. …Until you say that it's not your fault."

It only took Misty a few seconds of processing what he had said.

And then she snapped.

"ARE YOU CRAZY? WHAT ARE YOU EVEN THINKING?" she yelled at him, her voice at the top of her lungs. "I already told you, IT'S _MY _FAULT. IT'S MY FAULT! LET GO OF ME, YOU STUPID JERK!" She had so much adrenaline in her that she was able to yank her wrists out of his strong grip.

"IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT!" Gary shouted back.

"YES. IT. _IS_!" she screamed, slapping him on the cheek.

"GUYS!" Ash finally yelled, stepping in between them.

The room immediately became silent, with only the soft noise of Gary and Misty's heavy breathing filling the air.

Gary looked at Misty, both anger and slight worry in his coal black eyes as he rubbed the part of his cheek where Misty had hit him. Misty looked away from him, her hand on her forehead, and her eyes forming tears. Ash stood in between them, sighing at the mess; the mess that was caused from all the conflicts from the past week.

After what seemed like ages, Misty finally looked at Ash. "…Ash, I'm so sorry," she choked out, tears falling from her eyes.

She bowed in respect to emphasize her apology to him, and as well as to Brock and Autumn who were still in the room, verbally apologizing to them as well. She didn't dare make any eye contact with Gary.

"Excuse me," she then breathed out, barely above a whisper, and rushed out of the room.

Gary watched as she walked out of the room, his anger slowly seeping out of him as he realized what just happened between him and the redhead.

He couldn't help but feel his heart ache a little.

"What…What just happened?" he wondered out loud, continuing to rub the spot on his cheek where he'd been hit by Misty. That was the first time Misty had hit him in a long time; the last time she did was during the old days when she used to travel with Ash. That clearly wasn't a good sign.

The past argument then ran through his head, and his heart ached even more as he reran the event in his head. He'd lost his cool, and that never happened; _never_. "What did I just do?" Regret flooded his thoughts.

"You and Misty fought," Ash replied, stating the obvious.

Usually, Gary would've said some snide remark back to him for being so dense. But, he was too focused on Misty.

"I should go find her," he breathed out.

Ash raised his hand to protest. Misty could be crying right now, too angry and upset to talk to Gary. It would be the same thing that happened to him and Dawn a few hours ago. "I don't think that's such a good—" Before he knew it, Gary was out of the room.

Ash sighed, and dropped his hand. "…idea." Ash sat down back in his chair, and looked at Dawn, who was still asleep on the couch.

'_If only I told her how I really feel,' _he thought to himself.

"It's not your fault, Ash," Brock reassured him. Ash looked up, remembering that Brock and Autumn were still in the room. He'd almost forgotten they were there.

"How is it not my fault?" he asked, his voice faltering. He didn't think he could keep himself together any longer. "Dawn could wake up any minute now, and she'd probably still be angry with me. And Misty thinks it's all her fault, and now she and Gary are fighting with each other!"

The raven-haired trainer looked at the blunette of his affections once more, and then buried his head into his hands. "…I wish I told her how I felt the first time," he softly said. "I wish I could take back all those mean things I said to her." He began to tear up once more.

"Well, sitting down and doing nothing but wishing isn't going to do anything about the problem," Brock replied to him. Autumn nodded, agreeing with the statement.

"I know," Ash replied. "But what am I supposed to do when she wakes up?"

"Talk with her, explain yourself, and apologize to her," Brock said. "I mean, you two have had your share of fights before, but you eventually worked things out and repaired your friendship."

"Yeah, but this is the most serious fight we've ever had!" Ash exclaimed, his voice cracking. "I'm so…afraid, so scared that she'll never forgive me, and that she'll never love me again. …I don't want to lose her, Brock." At this moment, he felt a tear stream down from one of his brown eyes.

Brock sighed. "That is true…" That point caught him off guard.

"…Why would you think that, Ash?" Autumn softly asked him.

Ash looked at her, surprised that she was actually speaking to him. "Because…all those things I said to her…she was so hurt by them."

"But you didn't mean it, right?"

Ash shook his head. "Of course not. I love her; as a friend, and as something more," he answered. "I don't even understand why I said those things. It hurts me _so much_ to know that I hurt her with those words."

"Then, when you tell her and explain to her how you really feel, she should understand," Autumn reasoned, a reassuring smile coming upon her lips. "And if she doesn't, it's her fault for not accepting the truth."

"And what if she doesn't accept truth? What if she never does?" he asked. By the tone in his voice, one could tell that he was really frightened for that moment, where he would explain _everything _to her.

Brock and Ash waited for Autumn's answer, who was looking to the ground as she searched for a response.

Finally, she came up with one, her eyes lighting up once she did.

"Then…she's not the one you're meant to be with," she simply replied.

She then went on to say, "If you and Dawn are really meant to be, then…she _will_ forgive you, in time. And everything will end up alright between you two," she told him, a smile on her face. "Just…don't expect her to forgive you so soon, because these types of things can take some time. But, if she really is the one for you, then her love for you should overpower her anger for you, and eventually…she'll forgive you; and then your relationship will be fixed." Her hazel eyes seemed to gleam once she finished talking.

Ash was really taken aback by all the advice she'd given him at that moment. It surprised him, and it also captured his attention, sparking some inspiration for him to talk to Dawn. He couldn't help but look at her with such a surprised expression.

Autumn blushed from embarrassment. "…Did I say something wrong?"

Ash chuckled lightly. "No! Not at all," he replied. "It's just that…what you just said, it really…got to me. There's no need to worry." He eyed the sleeping blunette on the couch when he said that phrase.

He turned back to Autumn and continued to speak to her. "Thanks Autumn," he told her. He then lightly beamed as he said, "No wonder you and Brock are together. You both know the right things to say when a friend needs to hear it; you're both good at giving advice."

Autumn blushed again and looked at Brock. "You _are_ a good teacher," she muttered to Brock, a shy smile coming across her face. "You always know the right things to say."

Brock grinned, knowing that she was referring to the first time they met at the Maid Café, where he helped her train her Miltank. He patted her head and smiled at her in a lovingly way. "Same goes to you," he replied. He then turned to Ash, and said, "Well Ash, we'd better get going. I've got to go walk Autumn back to her villa."

"You really don't have to, I can walk by myself," Autumn told him, flattered by his offer. "Stay with Ash, I can go by myself."

Ash shook his head. "No! It's fine," he reassured her. "Anyway, it's already late, so it'd be good to have Brock watching over you while you walk at this hour. Plus, I think Brock really wants to walk you back." Brock blushed at his last comment.

"Oh, alright," Autumn said, smiling at Brock. She then turned to Ash, and gave him a one-armed hug and her farewell. "Bye, Ash. I'll crossing my fingers for you and Dawn; you two would be so cute together!" She pulled away from him once she finished her goodbye.

It was Ash's turn to blush. "I…I hope our relationship turns out fine, too," he agreed. He couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm. "Bye, Autumn."

Brock chuckled, and put his hand on Ash's shoulder. "See you in a few."

"See you," Ash softly beamed.

He then watched the couple walk out of the room. As he did, his mind kept repeating the thought, _'I hope Dawn and I could have a relationship like that one day.'_

He turned to look at the girl lying on the couch. She looked so beautiful, even when she was sleeping, and even though she looked like a mess.

She always took his breath away, he realized. All those times that his heart began to race around her, all those times his hands began to shake when he was around, all those times his stomach felt funny around her, and all those times he couldn't think straight around her – that wasn't him being sick, like he used to convince himself to think.

That was him _falling_ for her.

He chuckled at himself. "If only I'd realized sooner," he whispered to himself, sitting down in his chair, beside the blunette. He felt another tear stream down his face. Only Dawn made him so emotional, only Dawn.

Words couldn't describe how scared he was for their future. He knew he'd have to apologize to her and explain his feelings to her to set things right, no doubt. He knew he had to speak with her as soon as she'd wake up. But the part he was really scared about was what she'd respond to him;

whether she'd forgive him and return his feelings back, or whether she would _not _forgive him and _reject _his feelings.

He sighed. She had every right to reject him, since he already sort of rejected her feelings without even thinking, not to mention publicly humiliate her, and cause her to angrily lose her cool, and fall into the ocean.

He was so stupid.

But…what Autumn had said earlier…

"_If you and Dawn are really meant to be, then…she will forgive you, in time. And everything will end up alright between you two."_

He really hoped that was the case for their relationship.

* * *

**Kathy: And, that's it! Sorry the chapter was so short this time. I just wanted to get this up as soon as possible for you guys!**

**Ash: As soon as possible? We waited for ONE YEAR and THREE MONTHS for this chapter, and you update the story with a short chapter?**

**Dawn: *whacks his head* Hey! At least she updated!**

**Ash: Hey, I thought you were sleeping!**

**Dawn: *laughs* That's only in the story, silly!**

**Kathy: *ignores them* And, sorry if sometimes the characters seemed…well, out of character at times. Or if the story seemed rushed at times. I haven't written fanfics for awhile now, hehe. I'll try my best to update and write more frequently now! And to improve my writing!**

**Ash: I wonder if by "frequently", you really mean another year and three months…**

**Dawn: *glares at him* Don't make me hit you again.**

**Ash: *freezes* Okay, okay!**

**Kathy: Please review! And hopefully, I'll get the next chapter up by next month! (:**


	11. Love

**Kathy: Um, hi guys! I know I really deserve to be hit with bricks. I'm not even gonna try to make excuses as to why I haven't updated in the longest time. It's basically life. I'm really sorry that I don't update as often as all of you would like me to.**

**Just know that all of your reviews mean THE WORLD to me! Everyone who has reviewed and told me how much they love the story and how much they can't wait for the next chapter...THANK YOU. Your reviews were the things that motivated me to get on and write the next chapter! Your reviews are also the reason why I'm trying to write this chapter now! So thank you all for your support! **

**I can't promise to finish this story by next year, but I CAN promise to finish this story before I go to college, which is, like, in two years, hahaha.**

**So, I hope all of you can be patient with me and continue to support me as I try to finish this story for you guys. I love you all! 3**

**Gary: *rolls his eyes* Just get on with the story.**

**Kathy: glares at him* Clearly, YOU haven't changed since I've been gone.**

**Dawn: Time for the disclaimer thingy!**

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon. (still wish I did) And I do not own the song "Teardrops On My Guitar."

**Ash: Why...? Oh wait. I won't even bother asking anymore. I know everyone's gonna yell at me or slap me or something.**

**Kathy: Hehehe, thanks. That saves me SO MUCH TIME.**

**Ash: ...What's that supposed to mean?!**

**Gary: *sighs* Just get on with the story.**

**Ash: Geez, what's with you today Gary?**

**Gary: JUST GET ON WITH THE STORY!**

**Ash: Okay, okay! Kathy, start the story!**

**Kathy: Bahahaha, okay! Here you go!**

* * *

**Chapter 11: Love**

"Misty?" Gary called out for the redhead. He walked down the hall of the villa, peering into every room to see if she was there.

She wasn't.

_'She's probably outside,'_ he thought to himself. He approached the villa's backdoor in a hurried manner, opening it and closing it as he walked out into the patio. He didn't know why he was acting so rash and hasty. Usually, he kept himself in order.

It felt like whenever things came to Misty, he couldn't think straight. Why?

Once on the patio, he saw a girl with red hair and a red dress sitting on the sandy ground just a couple meters away from the patio. She hugged her legs with her bare arms, and her forehead leaned against her knees.

"Misty," he breathed out. He walked towards her and sat beside her.

He looked at her. It was obvious that she was crying. Even though the area was poorly lit, he could see tears streaming down her face. He could hear her sniffling.

Misty looked to her right, realizing there was a presence beside her. Once she saw it was Gary, she quickly turned away, wiping away her tears, and managed to snap out, "What are you doing here?"

"To see if you're okay," he replied. He knew it was the wrong time to be thinking this, but he couldn't help but think she looked so cute when she was mad.

She turned to look at him and pouted. "To see if I'm okay? You're the one who yelled at me and made me run out the room!"

_'Even more cute,' _Gary thought to himself as he flushed. Realizing what she said, he shook the thought away. "Well...I'm sorry about that," he sincerely told her. "I guess I was just so worried about you that I ended up yelling at you instead."

Misty couldn't help but chuckle a little bit. "Gary Oak, worried about me?" she said. "That's a new one."

His cheeks warmed up. "Yeah..." he sighed. He looked over at her again and saw that she was shivering. "You're cold."

"We're sitting in front of a beach, so yeah. Of course I'm cold," she snapped back at him. She turned to look at him and saw that he was unbuttoning his white collared shirt.

Misty immediately blushed. "What...what are you doing?!"

Gary rolled his eyes. "Relax. I have a shirt underneath." Once he unbuttoned all the shirt buttons, he was left in a white T-shirt and his lean yet strong arms exposed. He handed his unbuttoned shirt to Misty, looking away from her as he did. "Take it," he told her.

"Ew. You expect me to wear your sweat?" she said. But even though she made that remark, she hesitantly took the shirt from his hands and slid it on. She felt a lot warmer than she did with just her dress. "...Thanks," she muttered out.

"Y-You're welcome," he replied.

A silence came upon them as they sat there. Both of them looked out into the distance. A full moon was in the sky. A lot of stars were visible compared to within Sunyshore City due to the lesser amount of lights and technology in the town's shores. Waves roared in the background.

"I know it's not my fault that Ash and Dawn are in this situation right now," Misty said, finally breaking the silence.

"It's really not," Gary added.

Misty glared at him. "I know, thank you for repeating that," she grumbled. Gary chuckled once she said that.

She turned to look at him. "Thanks for worrying about me," she told him, flashing him a smile.

The smile disappeared right after it came though. "But even though I know it's not my fault, I still feel like I shouldn't have come and visited them," she admitted.

Gary sighed, locking his dark eyes with her sea green eyes. "Why though?"

Misty felt her throat tighten up a little bit. "Didn't I already say it before? If I never came, Dawn wouldn't be as hurt as she is now," she explained. "If I never came, Dawn wouldn't be so depressed. Ash would've never yelled at Dawn. Dawn and Ash wouldn't have argued with each other. Dawn would've never fell into the ocean."

She paused for a moment, feeling that if she talked some more, she would end up crying again.

Misty could feel her eyes watering. She tried to smile to lighten the mood, but it failed. "...See? If I never came, Dawn and Ash wouldn't be in this mess."

Gary's eyes remained away from her. It sort of pained him to hear her think so low of herself. He had to get her in a better mood.

"...Well, if you look at it that way, it does look like they'd be better off if you never came," Gary breathed out. He looked at Misty, and saw a few tears fall from her face. He felt the strong urge to wipe them away with his finger.

He continued to speak. "But, the way I see it...I think it's good that you came."

Misty wiped away a tear, letting out a small laugh at the same time. "Why would you think something as stupid as that?"

He flashed her a smile. "Well, because you came, Ashy Boy was able to realize that he really loved Dawn," he started. Once he said the first reason, he could feel the tension in Misty gradually decrease. He liked that.

Gary continued to list the good effects of her coming. "You were able to realize that you really didn't love Ashy Boy," he explained.

The next reason, he knew, was one that would be hard to admit. He let out a small breath, and started to speak once more. "And I...I was able..." His words started coming out slower. And subconsciously, he started moving closer to Misty.

Before he knew it, their bodies were so close that his arm was touching hers. His face was just a few inches away from hers. He continued to speak, his voice getting quieter, "...I was able...to realize..."

At that moment, his forehead was touching hers. He could feel her breath and the heat radiating from her.

Misty's face was all red as she realized how close they were. His hot breath, his heat, she could feel it.

"...R-Realize what?" she asked.

"That I love _you_," he breathed out.

And at that moment, Gary couldn't hold it in any longer.

Right after he said that, he placed his lips on hers, and kissed her.

At first, he came on softly. But after the first second, he deepened the kiss. Misty, caught off guard, had her eyes wide open in shock. She couldn't resist him though. She gave in, closing her eyes and kissing him back.

When he felt her kiss back, he smiled and kissed her some more. His arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her towards him. He placed his other hand at the back of her head. She wrapped her arms around his neck.

The kiss was genuine, yet strong at the same time. It was like an explosion of feelings that had been bottled up for the longest time.

They pulled away, their arms still around each other and their faces still very close.

"Gary," Misty breathed out. She was speechless. It was all surprising to her, especially that he came head on with a kiss.

"You have no idea how long I've been wanting to do that," he told her, his voice full of desire. He kissed her again on the cheek; he really couldn't stop himself.

She flushed. She never knew he had such strong feelings for her. "How...How long?" she asked.

"Since Ash left for Sinnoh," he replied. "That's when we started spending more time with each other."

Her eyes widened. "That was two years ago!" she exclaimed. All that time, he had his eyes on her. She really couldn't believe it. Gary Oak, _the _Gary Oak...was in love with the Cerulean City gym leader, Misty? How? Why? Her head started to spin.

"I know," he breathed out. His lips neared hers as he attempted to kiss her again, but Misty quickly blocked it with her hand.

"Hold on, Gary," she said. She couldn't think straight with him kissing her.

She took a few deep breaths, attempting to calm herself down. After she took those breaths, the rushed feeling her head was going through slowed down to a halt. She was relieved, she could now think straight.

She looked up at Gary, whose eyes were all on her.

So much had happened all in one night; Ash realized his love for Dawn, Misty realized she didn't love Ash, Dawn and Ash argued, Misty and Gary argued, and now Gary was telling her that he loved her! ...Was this just a spur-of-the-moment thing? Were all of their mixed and jumbled emotions just going to their heads?

Misty took one more breath before talking again. "Are you sure this isn't just a spur-of-the-moment thing? Or that this isn't just a physical thing?"

Gary smiled. "Yes, I'm sure," he reassured her. "I love you, Misty." Misty couldn't help but blush again once he said that.

Gary chuckled. "I love how you make fun of me. I love how you care about others so much that you're willing to say it's your fault," he told her, looking at her with loving eyes. "I love how you smile when you win a Pokemon battle. I love how fired up you always are. I love _everything_ about you. This whole vacation helped me realize that, after seeing you with Ash, dancing with you, everything!"

A sincere expression then entered his face. "And even if you don't love me back, I'll keep loving you. I wouldn't be able to get rid of these feelings, even if I tried."

Misty felt her cheeks warming up. "Gary..." she breathed out, "I never knew...I mean, sometimes I had a feeling there was something, but I didn't know it was that strong." All those things he'd said, she just _really _couldn't believe it.

Gary chuckled. "Well, I've been hiding it for two years, so it's alright."

Misty let out a small laugh. "Well, just to let you know...I like you too," she admitted, her cheeks red. "But, let's try to take it slow first. I don't wanna rush everything and realize that I really don't have any feelings for you. It'd be the same thing that happened between me and Ash. I thought I loved him and then realized that I didn't." She didn't want another confusing emotional event to go through. Taking things slow would probably be best if she wanted that.

"So what do you want to do?"

Misty took some time to think about it, and then came up with an idea.

"What if we start out with dates and stuff first?" she suggested. "And then, if we realize that what we have for each other is _really _love and not just a physical thing, we can become boyfriend and girlfriend..." She looked at him, and then looked away, blushing furiously. "Oh! This is _so_ embarrassing."

Gary chuckled again, kissing her cheek. "I'm okay with that," he replied. "So, dinner tomorrow at seven o'clock?"

Misty looked at him and smiled. "Yes, I'd like that."

* * *

Water.

Water was the last thing she remembered.

Water surrounded Dawn as she fell into the raging waves of the ocean. Everything around her was going mad; the water, the ocean waves, and herself. She couldn't take the emotional roller coaster she was going through anymore. She just wanted to give up.

She let herself drown in the water. She let herself get pulled by the raging current.

She couldn't take it anymore.

But even though she was letting herself give up, she was terrified.

Dawn remembered the loneliness she had felt whenever Ash brought up Misty; whenever he said her name, whenever he talked about her, whenever he said that he missed her. The loneliness got even worse when Ash yelled at her at the ball, practically humiliating her in front of everyone, saying that there was nothing special about her and that he would never love a girl like her.

At that moment, Dawn was crushed.

And then all of a sudden, he came back and told her that every insult he told her at the ball was a lie and that he didn't mean it. Really? REALLY?

What was she supposed to say? What was she supposed to _believe_?

She was terrified of what the truth would be.

She wanted to know though.

But, she was too tired. She had enough. The ocean waves dragged her and dragged her further from the pier. Further from Ash.

_'Ash...'_

She really loved Ash though.

She started to cry again. "Ash..." she breathed out. "...Ash. Ash!"

Suddenly, her eyes opened. The first thing she saw was a ceiling. She wasn't in the ocean anymore? Ash insulting her at the ball, the argument she had at the pier, falling into the ocean...was all of that just a dream?

She sat up, or at least tried to. Her body ached as she got into a sitting position. She looked down at her clothes and saw that she was still in the white dress she wore to the ball. The gossamer around the skirt of the dress was torn, along with bits of sand all around it. Her clothes and her body felt damp. She ran her hands through her hair; it was damp as well. It also felt grainy, like sand was all over her head.

_'So it wasn't a dream...' _she thought to herself. She didn't know how to react to the fact all of the past events were real.

Her thoughts were interrupted by light snores. She turned to her left and blushed after seeing the source of the snores.

Ash was sitting - more like slouching - on the cushioned chair right beside the sofa Dawn was sitting on. Although it wasn't as much compared to herself, there were bits of sand all over him as well. His clothes and his hair looked damp too. The fedora hat he'd worn at the party remained on his lap. And he looked exhausted. He was asleep, with light snores escaping from his mouth. His eyes were closed and his head leaned against the back of the chair.

Dawn couldn't help but smile a bit. _'So cute,' _she thought to herself as she looked at him.

It took her awhile to realize again that he was equally damp and sandy as she was. _'Wait...so, if there's sand all over him, and his clothes are damp...__then that means,_' she started processing her thoughts, and her eyes widened as she realized the answer,_ '...then that means-!'_

"He saved me," she breathed out, blushing and smiling at the same time.

She smiled even bigger this time as she continued to look at him.

Just knowing that he gave in the effort to save her was enough for her to accept his apology. She now knew that what he'd said at the pier was the truth. He didn't mean all the insults he told her at the ball. He still cared for her. She was still his best friend. Of course, the conflict between them won't be fixed just like that; she'd still make him or wait for him apologize to her again.

But, knowing that he still cared about her was enough for her to mentally forgive him.

Overall, she was just in a better mood after realizing all of that.

She couldn't stop smiling.

Dawn slowly got up and stood next to the sleeping Ash. She leaned down her head, her mouth next to his ear, and whispered, "Thank you, Ash." A blush creeped up her face as she thought about the next thing she was going to do.

At first she hesitated, but then she gave in and kissed Ash on the cheek as another way of saying thanks.

Right after she did, Ash moved a little bit, but he remained sleeping. And to Dawn's surprise, his mouth formed into a smile.

That made Dawn blush even more.

She shook her head, and then walked out of the room. She knew her whole face was red.

_'He smiled. He smiled!' _Her mind couldn't help but replay that moment in her mind.

She sighed, and then remembered that she was covered in sand and seawater. "...I really need to take a shower," she muttered to herself. She walked into her room to grab her towel, and the clothes and undergarments she would change into. She then walked into the bathroom, closing and locking the door.

* * *

**Kathy: Okay, finished! I hope this chapter was decent enough! In the past, I wasn't planning to make the Egoshipping in this story official, but...I guess I changed my mind, hahaha. I hope the Egoshipping scene was okay, 'cause that's the first time I've written that kind of scene in a lonnnnggg time. I also hope the Pearlshipping scene was enough to satisfy all you Pearlshippers! And I also hope that this chapter wasn't too corny.**

**Ash: Is the Egoshipping scene why you wanted to get on with the story already, Gary?**

**Gary: *blushes* Shut up!**

**Ash: *singing* Gary and Misty sitting in a tree! K-I-S-S-I-N-**

**Gary: *glares* SHUT UP, ASHY BOY.**

**Ash: *gets scared* Shutting up now.**

**Kathy: Ignore them, hahaha. So, review if you want to! I won't promise to update by next month, but I will promise to update as soon as I can! (: Bye!**


	12. Apology Accepted

**Kathy: HERE IT IS. THE SCENE ALL YOU PEARLSHIPPERS HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR.**

**Ash: FINALLY!**

**Gary: I'VE BEEN WAITING FOREVER.**

**Kathy: Don't say I didn't warn you guys. I am an _extremely slow _updater! I'm so sorry. But anyway, thank you to everyone who hasn't given up on this fanfic, and thank you to all the people who have reviewed/followed/favorited this story! It means THE WORLD to me! (:**

**Gary: NO ONE CARES.**

**Ash: Just start the story already!**

**Kathy: *glares at them* FINE.**

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or the song, "Teardrops On My Guitar". If I did, I would be super rich and more fast at updating my fanfics.

* * *

**Chapter 12: Apology Accepted**

2:00 AM.

That was what the clock read.

Dawn ran a hand through her thoroughly-cleaned blue hair. She just finished taking a good long shower, her body now replenished and clean from the mess the beach and ocean had swept upon her moments ago.

The blunette let out a small yawn.

_'...Is Ash still sleeping?' _she thought to herself as she hesitantly peered into the family room.

Even before looking into the room, she could hear the trainer's light snores.

She rolled her eyes at his snoring and then chuckled a bit at how cute he was when he was asleep. But then, she realized that he didn't take a shower yet, and he was still messy from the past event at the beach and the ocean.

Dawn frowned. Ash would surely get sick if he didn't take a shower after that. And Dawn didn't want that to happen.

Subconsciously, Dawn walked over to the sleeping Ash and was about to tap his shoulder to wake him up. But luckily, she stopped herself as a new thought came to her mind. _'WAIT!' _her mind demanded her. _'If you wake him up, he might try to continue the conversation you guys were having before you fell into the ocean! You're not ready for that!' _

Dawn flinched. Her mind was right. She wasn't emotionally ready to have that conversation yet. The blunette needed at least two good nights to think things through before she could even face him.

"...But his health is more important than that," she breathed out, making her decision.

Reluctantly, Dawn shook Ash's shoulder. "A-Ash...wake up," she called out to him. "You're dirty. You need to take a shower."

Slowly, the trainer's eyes opened, revealing those big brown orbs. Dawn couldn't help but feel mesmerized at the sight of them.

A yawn escaped his mouth as he came to. He stared in front of him for a few seconds, then looked at the girl beside him, trying to register who she was.

"...Dawn?" Ash groggily muttered. He seemed to be half asleep. He resembled a child who just woke up in the morning, rubbing his eyes with his hands. Dawn had to stifle a giggle; a sleepy Ash was adorably amusing.

Due to his sleepy demeanor, Dawn was sure that he wouldn't bring up the emotional conversation they had at the beach. So, she took advantage of the situation, stayed beside Ash, and told him, "Go take a shower, Ash. You're a mess!" She nagged him as if she was his mother. She then ran her fingers through his raven-black hair and added, "There's sand all over your hair and your body. And all your clothes are still wet! You're gonna get sick if you don't take a shower!"

The sleepy Ash grabbed her hand and pushed it off of his hair. The action made Dawn slightly blush.

"Okay, okay!" he crankily replied. "I will!"

He then stomped out of the room, following Dawn's orders and heading to his room to gather his clothes and a towel.

A grin lit up Dawn's face. He didn't remember a thing about their conflict at the beach.

But that forgetfulness was only temporary.

* * *

Although Dawn did talk to the sleepy Ash the evening before, she avoided Ash as much as she could this day.

She knew better.

She knew that if she ran into him, there was a one-hundred percent chance that he would bring up the topic about his emotions, the incident at the beach, and all that stuff.

And she still didn't feel ready to talk about that with him. She would probably burst out crying again if they did. And she didn't want him to see her like that.

So, her strategy was to avoid him all day. It wasn't the best and she knew it wouldn't work forever, but it was the only thing she could come up with.

She woke up early to eat breakfast before he woke up and ate. She walked around the summer resort and walked into a different room or section if she saw him coming her way. She even hid behind a tree one time when he was heading her way and there was nowhere else to hide.

Dawn sighed. "I'm pathetic," she whispered to herself.

She now found herself lying on a soft towel on the beach's shores. An umbrella shielded her whole body from the scorching sun. A pale pink tank top covered her torso, and dark blue shorts completed the outfit; the outfit was made to accommodate to the hot yet breezy weather.

The blunette was supervising her Pokemon at the beach. She thought that this was the best time to take them out since Ash was probably eating lunch at that same moment. Placing her hands behind her head, she laid in a state of relaxation as she looked out to the sky.

She slightly felt proud of herself for successfully avoiding the raven-haired trainer the past day.

Dawn subconsciously smiled at her success so far. She was a little more confident that she wouldn't be running into him any time soon.

...Or so she thought.

"Dawn," a familiar voice called out.

And it was the last person she wanted to see.

Her eyes widened when she realized who it was. _'WHY?!' _her mind screamed. _'OF ALL PEOPLE, WHY DOES IT HAVE TO BE _HIM_?!'_

As a result of desperation, the blunette closed her eyes and placed her forearm over her eyes, pretending to be asleep. She assumed that Ash was still too dense to differentiate the difference between sleeping and fake-sleeping.

She underestimated him.

Dawn felt a hand grab her forearm off her eyes. "I know you're really not sleeping, Dawn. I saw that your eyes were open just a couple seconds ago," the familiar voice said. It felt way closer now – directly above her, to be exact. "I'm not _that _dumb."

Dawn opened her eyes only to meet familiar brown eyes. She sighed. She already knew whose they were.

They raven-haired trainer was wearing his trademark cap, a white t-shirt with red stripes, and black gym shorts. No matter what he was wearing, he always ended up looking handsome to Dawn.

The trainer sat down beside the blunette. He kept his eyes locked with hers, eyeing her with an expression full of worry, confusion, and a bit of what seemed to be...annoyance. Dawn grimaced. He was annoyed at her. She knew what was coming.

Dawn sat up and hugged her knees. She kept her eyes away from his. "W-What do you want, Ash?"

"Why do you keep avoiding me?" he confronted her.

Dawn nervously laughed. "What...What are you talking about?" she asked, a fake confused expression on her face, as if she was truly innocent. "I-I haven't been ignoring you! Everything's perfectly fine!"

She then stood up and looked out to the beach waters. Her Pokemon were still playing in the water.

An idea struck her.

"Well Ash, if that's all you wanted to ask, then I'll just go ahead and take my Pokemon back to the villa. We haven't had our lunch yet," she quickly told him. She then took one swift glance at him and said, "See you!"

She started heading over to her Pokemon, but then she was stopped by a firm grip around her wrist.

Ash caught her.

He wasn't letting her get away this time.

Dawn felt her body become tense as she realized she couldn't escape. The whole conversation that she worked so hard to avoid was about to happen.

She slowly turned her head to meet his eyes, and she couldn't help but feel nervous once she did. That same serious and annoyed expression was still on his face.

"Dawn," he started with a grave tone, "I don't know why you keep avoiding me, but I know that you're doing it on purpose. _I know you._" Dawn sighed. He was right. They were best friends, after all.

Ash continued to speak. "And, we really need to talk," he added. "If we don't get this over with now, I don't think I'll be able to focus on anything at all. And I don't think anything will get better if we just act like nothing happened." She heard his voice crack a bit and the volume of his voice rising as he spoke to her.

She felt her heart break a little. He really was serious about all of this._ 'Of course he is,' _she thought to herself. It was in his personality. Whenever he was serious about something, he was determined to see it through until the end.

And after hearing the genuine feelings in his voice, there was no way Dawn could refuse to talk with the raven-haired trainer.

"...Alright, _fine_," she said. "But first, let go of my arm."

Ash looked down at his hand and realized he was still holding her thin wrist. He blushed and quickly let go of her. "Sorry," he muttered. He then sat back down on the beach towel and said, "Let's just stay and talk here. So you can watch over your Pokemon too."

Dawn fought back a smile. _'He's always thinking about the Pokemon,' _she amusedly thought to herself as she sat down next to him.

The next moment was filled with an awkward air of silence as the two tried to figure out ways to start off the conversation without making things more awkward. It was difficult, considering the major argument they had the day before.

But finally, Ash spoke.

"I'm sorry about what happened yesterday," the raven-haired trainer apologized. He paused as he tried to figure out what to say next.

"...All those hurtful things that I said to you at the dance...I really hate myself for saying those things to you. Gah, I was so stupid!" he clenched his teeth as spoke. He dropped his head in his hands and continued to speak. "I-I was just so confused by everyone trying to find out who I liked that I ended up saying the opposite of what I really feel."

Dawn was speechless. He...he was apologizing. And he actually felt bad about doing all those things! She was so moved by his apology that she even felt tears forming at her eyes.

Ash began to list all the things he was sorry for. "I'm sorry for yelling at you. And hurting you. I _really_ didn't mean to!" he turned to look at her, a hurt and sorry expression in his watery brown eyes.

He continued. "And I'm _really _sorry for letting you fall into the ocean," he emphasized. He felt his mouth fighting to form into a frown as he talked. His eyes also fought back tears that demanded to stream down his face.

Dawn's heart broke.

He wanted to cry.

And here she was, thinking that _she'd_ be the one to burst out crying when they had this conversation.

Whenever she saw Ash fighting back the urge to cry, she felt she had to cry with him. It hurt her to see him like that, no matter what the situation was.

And the fact that he wanted to cry because he hurt her! That hit her. Home run.

Ash moved his hat so that it covered his watery eyes. He looked away from Dawn, not wanting her to see him looking so...so weak. He continued to speak. "You have _no idea _how _worried _I was when I saw you fall. If only...if only I never said those mean things to you, then that would've _never_-"

Ash was interrupted by a sudden movement of gentle arms wrapping around his neck.

_Dawn's _arms.

"Dawn...?" Ash breathed out as he tried to register what was happening.

Dawn was...hugging him?

_'Isn't she supposed to be angry with me?!' _he thought to himself.

"I forgive you," she said.

Ash couldn't believe what she was saying. "What?"

A small laugh escaped Dawn's mouth, and that was music to Ash's ears. "I said that I forgive you, Ash!"

The raven-haired trained pulled away from her and looked her straight in the eyes, just to make sure she was telling the truth. "Really? _Already_?" he questioned, disbelief in his voice. "But I hurt you, Dawn! I made you cry. For crying out loud, I made you fall into the ocean!"

"Okay, first of all, you didn't make me fall into the ocean. I did that to myself. So, it's my fault for being so clumsy," she explained to him.

She watched the frown on Ash's face disappear. That relieved her. She continued to speak. "And...how could I be mad at you when you saved my life?" she said.

Ash shook his head. "I thought...I thought that saving your life and saying sorry wouldn't be enough for you to forgive me," he explained, his frown returning. "I thought that you'd hate me forever after hearing me say those mean things." His voice was cracking everywhere. Dawn couldn't hold in her tears anymore. After hearing the guilt in his voice, she just couldn't.

"I forgive you, Ash, and that's that," she managed to breath out. "I forgive you because I know that you didn't mean all those mean things you said. You even said so yourself!"

She saw that he was still looking away from her. She put her hand on his cheek and turned his head so he was facing her. His brown eyes were red and watery. A tear was streaming down his cheek. She felt a tear stream down her face as well. Dawn's heart broke even more and more.

_'How could I be angry at him after seeing him like this?' _she thought to herself.

She wiped away his tear with her thumb and kept her hand on his face. "And I thought I'd be the first to cry when we had this conversation," she joked, attempting to lighten up the atmosphere. Ash flashed a small smile and let out a small chuckle at her attempt.

"How could I hate you, Ash?" she said. "We're best friends. We'll always be." She smiled at him reassuringly.

She blushed when she realized what she was about to say next.

"No matter what happens," she started, and then looked into his dark brown eyes, "...I'll always love you."

She then embraced him and rested her head on his chest. She felt his arms wrap around her as well.

The next thing he said caught her off guard.

"I love you too, Dawn."

Never in her life did Dawn think Ash would say that to her.

She didn't know whether he meant he loved her as a sister, a best friend, or something more, but that didn't matter.

He said that he _loved her_.

_He loved her_.

Dawn bursted out into tears and started crying into his shirt.

"Dawn...why are you crying?" Ash asked her.

Dawn let out the last few tears she had and then pulled away from him to wipe away her tears. "Because...I'm happy!" she beamed, a smile on her face. "You said you loved me. It made me happy!"

Ash couldn't help but smile at how thrilled she looked.

But then, she turned away from him and hugged her knees. "Now...I don't know if you mean you love me as just a sister, just a best friend, or if you love me as something _more_...but, you said that you loved me," she paused, her eyes lighting up as she said the next part, "and that makes me happy."

Ash chuckled and blushed as he began to speak. "I love you as a best friend, Dawn," Ash started.

"Oh," Dawn breathed out, a little disappointment in her voice.

"But, I also love you so much that I want to...um, that I want to..."

Dawn looked at him, confused. "'Want to' what?"

Ash hid his eyes under his cap and blushed furiously as he said the next part. "Want to kiss you."

Dawn's eyes widened. "What? What?!" she exclaimed as she tried to comprehend what he said. "But I thought you liked Misty like that!"

Ash continued to look away from the blunette. Unlike with Pokemon battles, Ash wasn't very confident when explaining his feelings. "I thought I did too," he explained. "But...but then I realized that those feelings I thought I had for Misty were really the feelings I had for you."

He turned to look at Dawn. She still looked at him in total shock, like she wasn't expecting his answer at all. He had to stop himself from laughing at her adorable expression.

He continued his explanation. "Like, whenever I was around you, my heart would race. Whenever you talked to me, my stomach would feel funny," he chuckled as he recalled all those times. "Every single time something like that happened, I thought I was getting sick or something. But really, it was me starting to like you."

Dawn laughed. "Wow, you're so dense," she breathed out.

Ash laughed with her. "Yeah, I know," he beamed. "And when I saw you all dressed up for the dance yesterday...it was like I was hypnotized or something. You looked really..." He turned to look at her, "pretty."

Dawn blushed furiously.

"And when I saw you dancing with Gary, I couldn't help but wish that _I_ was the one dancing with you," he admitted. "I felt really...jealous." He flushed as he realized what he just said. "Man, I probably sound so stupid!" He sheepishly laughed at himself. He was really embarrassed.

All Dawn could do was sit there in shock as she comprehended all the things Ash said.

She never knew.

All this time, she assumed that he loved Misty like that.

"Wow, Ash..." she breathed out. "And you _really _mean all of this?"

Ash blushed again. "Yeah."

"But...how can I be sure that your feelings are real?" she asked him, worry in her voice. "I mean...you just realized all of this yesterday, right? How can you be so sure...?"

"I _know _it's real. There's no need to worry," Ash reassured her, a determined look on his face. "I love you, Dawn." She blushed once again when he said that. "And when I'm ready, I'll ask you out."

Dawn remained speechless.

A smile then came upon Ash's face. "Okay, since I finally admitted who I like and stuff..." Ash started. He turned to look at her with a devious smile. "...it's _your turn_. Who do you love?"

Dawn's jaw dropped.

She didn't know if she was more shocked at the fact that he _still_ didn't know that she loved him or if she was more shocked at how he asked her _that _question.

"...Don't you know already?" she asked him.

"Well...I have a hunch, but I'm not one-hundred percent sure," he said. Almost as if he was _teasing _her.

Was he teasing her? Or was he really _that _dense?

The blunette squinted her eyes at him. "Come on. I think you know already."

"No, I don't."

"Yes you do!"

"Dawn, I really don't."

And that's when Dawn couldn't take it.

"Okay, fine! IT'S YOU!" she yelled, an annoyed tone in her voice. "I. Love. _You_." She eyed the raven-haired trainer with an irritated expression. "Happy now?"

She stood up and started to walk over to her Pokemon in the ocean waters, leaving the trainer behind. That was enough of a ride on the emotional roller coaster. She began to angrily mutter to herself about how he didn't need to ask, how he already knew, and why he had the nerve to tease her and such.

Suddenly, Dawn felt two hands grab her shoulders.

The hands turned her around.

All of a sudden, she felt lips on hers. _Ash's _lips.

She didn't know whether to stay mad at him or kiss him back.

But soon enough, she gave in to the kiss.

It was gentle and genuine. It was amazing. It was indescribable. There were no words that could describe how happy the blunette felt. Never in her lifetime did Dawn think Ash would kiss her.

But here they were, doing exactly that.

Ash pulled away from her, that trademark grin on his face. The grin that he had whenever he won something.

"I love you, Dawn," he told her once again.

Dawn flushed. "I...I love you too."

Ash grinned even more. "I'll see you back at the villa?"

Dawn slowly nodded. "Yeah, see you."

Ash flashed a smile at her once more before heading back to the villa. Dawn watched him as he walked, dazed by all the events that just happened. She couldn't believe that all of that just happened. She couldn't believe it. She just couldn't.

_'Did that really just happen?'_ she asked herself, touching her lips.

"He kissed me..." she breathed out. Before she knew it, a smile was on her face.

She couldn't believe it.

Their whole conflict was fixed. Right there.

And more importantly, Ash had the same feelings for her that she had for him.

After all this time, he loved her.

"_I love you, Dawn_."

Ash's voice echoed in her head. She blushed and giggled as she recalled what just happened in the past hour.

Dawn knew that a smile would be stuck on her face for the rest of the day.

* * *

**Kathy: Um...I sort of felt like I rushed the whole chapter and that the characters were OOC sometimes, but...I don't know, hahaha. THE STORY HAS A MIND OF IT'S OWN. I feel like the chapter could've been better, but oh well. IT WAS THE STORY. IT CHOSE TO BE WRITTEN LIKE THIS.**

**I tried to write the characters as close to their personalities as possible. I really really tried. I hope you all still enjoyed the chapter though!**

**(I just blame the story. Like I said, IT HAS A MIND OF IT'S OWN.)**

**Gary: No one cares.**

**Kathy: *shoves him off to the side* So...review if you want to! I'll probably update in the next six months! (Hopefully, lol.)**


End file.
